


The taste of  freedom

by princessofthieves



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Gen, Homophobia, Horror, Internalized Homophobia, Link misses his freedom, Lore Building, M/M, Mute!Link, No Beta, OC death, Parella (from Skyward Sword), Past Abuse, Slow Burn AF, Zonai Tribe, Zora Link (Legend of Zelda), Zora Mask, gods know i could use a beta, violence in combat
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-29
Updated: 2020-05-14
Packaged: 2020-09-29 19:02:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 109,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20440964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princessofthieves/pseuds/princessofthieves
Summary: Link is the Hero of Hyrule, Queen Zelda's most valuable knight, yet he doesn't enjoy this new life. He misses the wilderness, the freedom of traveling without a real destination, and when a chance to 'be free' presents itself he's more than ready to embrace it.





	1. Knight Link

**Author's Note:**

> It started as a joke. It's probably still a joke. I don't know what I'm doing anymore but here, have this zora!Link fic from me.

Anyone would have envied Link’s position as Zelda’s appointed knight and hero of Hyrule, he had literally anything a man could ask for: he had power with the whole army under his command, he had the queen’s friendship and trust, he could request any exotic or fancy food to satisfy his stomach’s neverending plea for more…

For anything he wanted he only had to snap his fingers while ordering the troops around and pretending he truly fit the role of commander. Even if he hated all the paperwork. And hated even more sending young inexperienced soldiers in dangerous places while he sat behind a desk.

Despite all he had Link often found himself staring longingly into the distance, each passing year felt duller, and he felt a pang of jealousy whenever one of his men returned from an expedition and shared details about his travels… living in the castle felt wrong. Being between so many people felt wrong. His whole life felt… wrong.

The only reason he managed to keep things together? Zelda. His, Hylia forgive him for being so bold, sister. They visited hell together and managed to walk out of it, if she was enduring the pressure of being the new ruler of a territory that still needed to be rebuilt, of having to gather scattered communities under a single flag… he could be strong too.

Right?

Right.

A sigh escaped his lips as he finished getting ready for the day, even if the sun still had to raise and he could barely see himself in the light of a candle he had work waiting for him. Not to mention the longer he spent within his rooms the stronger he felt trapped there…. at least in his office or in the training grounds he could keep himself busy.

He slapped his cheeks and walked outside, ready to start his routine: first, he was going to check all the written reports and letters from their outposts on the borders, second, he was going to train the new recruits and check with his subordinates, third… ugh, diplomatic meetings. 

It’s just another day he told himself before reaching his workplace and taking in a sharp breath after taking a look inside. Somehow overnight the piles of paperwork awaiting him had grown. Where did that stuff came from? Who wrote reports during the night? He allowed himself a disgruntled groan before taking a seat and starting to sort the piles of documents. 

More soldiers asking for a transfer near the Gerudo desert, big surprise, requests from the villagers in Hateno (oh how he craved to go back to his old house for a while) to deal with some remaining monsters in the area, gorons offering jewels in exchange of a mining permission in the Queen’s territories...  
It was just another day in the castle, wasn’t it? Still one of the documents managed to grab his attention, the paper used wasn’t the one used for diplomatic letters (he still had to figure out how the gorons wrote those, by the way) nor the standard report formats any of his troops would turn in on a daily basis. It was… something old? Did someone misplace an old message there? 

No… it wasn’t even a message, someone copied a newspaper article for him, something about a mask with the power of the sea forgotten somewhere in the coldest waters of the realm? Lake kilsie in Hebra, perhaps? No, he could still swim in it, the coldest waters he ever found were on the Great Plateau but who beside him would even know about the River of the Dead anyway? Still, if there still was a mask to be found.. he loved exploring all Hyrule searching for them, no matter how difficult they were to locate or how vague the rumors leading to them were.

Sweet Hylia, just thinking about them remembered Link even more how much he missed his freedom. Well, someone left this for him, right?

A small smile appeared on his face as he tapped his fingers on the wooden desk. Perhaps he could sneak away for once, with the Sheikah slate he could leave and return without even alerting anyone, and check a couple of locations before the sun was up. Link bit his lips looking at the piles of documents waiting for him, the next one in front of him something about the uniform inventory of the outpost near Haran lake. And their underwear.

That’s his life in the castle, isn’t it? Bureaucracy, fighting for a couple of hours every day pretending he could still consider himself a warrior despite being trapped between the castle’s walls, sitting in a corner looking serious and trying not to fall asleep as Zelda discussed whatever she needs to…

He missed the wild, he missed running under the rain and getting sick after sleeping with wet hair, he missed his horse and having to look for food in the middle of nowhere, he wanted to see the stars again from a place where torches and candles weren’t going to hide most of them, he wanted to be alone, truly alone, even if just for a couple of moments...

When one of the soldiers walked in the room to bring even more documents to check in all he saw were little blue lights disappearing in the dark.

\-----

The Champion had been missing for months. Months.

Sidon had been a mess for the first weeks pushing himself and his soldiers in a search that seemed to give no results then his clothes had been found. The Royal guard set he used to wear all the time in the castle was recovered by one of the zoras near the entrance of Gerudo Canyon: there were rips on them and signs of claws, hopes to find him alive almost vanished.

While Sidon refused to believe him gone, expeditions to find him almost come to a halt and, unable to find any hint about Link’s current whereabouts… he simply focused himself on his work. Or at least attempted to.

“My prince, are you listening?”

The zora blinked, focusing on the brown soldier in front of him.

“My apologies, Rivan, I got distracted for a moment.”

“As I was trying to say: we received news from the patrols in the wetlands. While we still have no signs of our hero there have been… sightings of something else.”

Sidon blinked again, how much of this conversation did he miss by getting lost in his thoughts?

“They speak of a zora with the most unusual coloration, golden scales and blue flippers.”

His headtail twitched, now that was… peculiar. Golden scales were a rarity between his people and as far as he could remember only one of his father’s old friends having that color.

“And he’s… naked, apparently.”

A gasp as his hand went to cover the silver collar around the neck, no respectable Zora would ever consider to show himself without appropriate jewelry… who was that shameless individual? No zora raised in the domain would ever show his bare body around, that was a sight for family members or partners only!

“The reports describe him as young, athletic, and covered in scars, they managed to get a good glance at him when he joined them to fight a group of lizalfos.”

“He what?”

“Our soldiers were ambushed while cleaning what’s left of the lizalfos base… and they say he jumped out of Bone Lake to defend them when they were being outnumbered. It seems he managed to push back the whole group. Alone. With a single rusty sword and some branches. Apparently laughing like a madman during the whole battle.”

The prince frowned in confusion, who in the name of hylia was this guy? And what was he doing basically outside the domain? Oh- OH! He almost sounded like a wild animal, perhaps this was a zora stranded outside the kingdom during the calamity and with no idea of what living like a Zora truly meant? He read tales about tadpoles being raised by members of other species, perhaps that was his case! How… fascinating!

Of course, his was just a theory but if he was right...

“I see… have a copy of the reports sent to my rooms, I will investigate this matter.”

A little smile on Rivan’s lips told Sidon how glad the soldier was to give him something to do, to distract him from Link’s disappearance, and the prince had to admit it to himself: he needed it.

“Did they send any other information about our mysterious friend?”

“I’m afraid not, my lord. He doesn’t seem interested to talk-”

Or he doesn’t know how to, Sidon told himself.

“- nor he allows our men to approach. He just seems to be there whenever our men need it… but only as long as it’s outside the Domain’s borders.”

The prince hummed while pondering about that last bit of information, despite acting like a wild minnow he seemed aware of the territories the Zora claimed as theirs, interesting. Perhaps he did receive some kind of education, even if minimal.

“I see. Thank you for your report, Rivan, feel free to go home.”

The other zora offered him a bow before walking away and Sidon found himself lost in thoughts once more. A mysterious stranger outside the realm, mh? He smiled for the first time in weeks, perhaps he finally found something good to keep himself busy while waiting for his beloved friend to come back.


	2. Excuse me while I run away

Link hadn’t realized how much he needed to escape from the castle until he was finally outside once more, running on the Great Plateau under the stars, the beauty of the night sky barely tainted by the red hues on the horizon where the sun was about to rise. Even the cold air that once bothered him only felt like a pleasant sting under the woolen vest of his uniform, the sight of the bokoblin camps still thriving with life and activity in their isolation gave him a strange weird feeling of happiness…  
Nothing changed on the Plateau. Nothing. The end of Ganon’s menace didn’t change anything between the ruins of the mysterious forgotten city nor the residents’s lives. Even when the silver lynel, still the silent patrol of the area, turned to look at him Link couldn’t help but grin widely and embrace the thrill of feeling once more like a prey.

Now that felt like… home.

Instead of heading straight for the glacial river as he planned and make this a short trip the hylian found himself wandering, a smile plastered on his face as he passed by two walking koroks and took a good moment to appreciate how the old hut still stood in the middle of nowhere. He could remember sleeping there, trying to find some warmth and safety, when he was nothing but a confused hylian trying to figure things out.

His hands, once covered in calluses, caressed the moss covered stones of the building and for a long, painful moment he wondered if he could just… stay.  
But he had to go, right? He had Zelda waiting, he had the love of his life, his horse, still waiting on a stable by the duelling peaks and there was no way to bring Lunch on the Plateau considering he gifted his queen the ancient saddle…

Link’s smile faded in bitterness as he stepped back, shaking his head and walking away, the temptation of embracing the loneliness of the isolated terrain was strong but his sense of duty kept him from doing so. 

Even if, let’s admit it, he didn’t really want to go back and enjoy another sessions of tea and talks about trades.

_Put yourself back together, young man._

Link recovered a years old skewer of meat from his slate, its quality somehow unchanged from the day he prepared it, and got himself ready to face the even colder air of the snow covered terrains with the spicy peppers cooked in his small snack.

The man let out a small, childish giggle as his boots sunk in the first small piles of snow and kept moving, his cheeks turning pink at the change of temperature. Perhaps this small trip was nothing really important but it still felt like filling his lungs with fresh air after holding his breath for the past five years.  
He loved it.

Now, he knew there were no more metallic chests in the cold river, he already checked it with magnesis in the past, so if there was anything it had to be still found he probably had to find it in the good, old ways. With a smug grin Link grabbed a long, sturdy branch from the side of the road and approached the waters.

\- - - -

It was cold, Link was covered in sweat and not only his uniform was covered in mud, he accidentally slipped on one of the rocks and his feet sunk in the frozen river and his boots were now drying on the shore. Bangs of his hair fell out of place as he kept pushing his improvised spear in the muddy bed of the river, still looking for something interesting while a small pile of ‘treasures’, old pots and metallic trinkets, kept growing on the ground.

He was tired, his hands were covered with small blisters, and his whole body ached considering how long he spent without any proper training.  
It felt amazing. 

The Hylian couldn’t deny that he felt guilty, the sun was already high in the sky and the residents of the castle definitely already noticed he was missing but… not even knowing he was probably creating chaos back, ugh, home could force him to go back. Not now, he could always find an excuse later, right?

Not to mention he didn’t even want to go back, he felt his anxiety rise whenever he thought about the castle. Link hit the mud with strength to let out his frustration… and he struck gold. Or, well, something completely different from the mix of pebbles and dirt he found in the river so far.

His eyes opened wide at the unexpected change in resistance and the barely audible ‘thud’ coming from below. Was this… wood? Yes! Yes it was!

An excited squeal escaped his lips, he would have been embarrassed about it in any other moment, and he threw the wooden tool on the side to reach forward and attempt to dig the chest out despite the way the waters were basically eating his skin away. The cold hurt him, he couldn’t even drag that heavy thing out of the water since it seemed stuck in the ground and all Link could do was trying to move all the debris from the top… and he loved every second of it.

It was with a loud laugh that he finally held the content of the chest up, droplets dripping on his face as he let his prize gleam in the sunlight. It was a mask, an old, wooden mask that probably didn’t rot only because the River of the Dead was so cold it preserved it, and it reminded him of a Zora’s face… did that mean there were masks of the other races too? Well, he didn’t care for now, he just crawled back to the shores, sitting down on the snow and looking at his new treasure.

A zora mask.

Man, now that he stopped thinking about it how long had it been since his last visit to the domain? Three years? Maybe four? Sometimes he missed how friendly and warm some of those had been to him during his journey even if he clashed with some at the beginning. He shook his head, perhaps he owed them a visit after all, he could try to join the next diplomatic expedition and at least say hello to Sidon in the meanwhile.

The big boy didn’t hesitate to mention him they could have been brothers and Link almost forgot about it. Oh, well, no point in worrying too much about that now, right?

Link tilted his head studying the mask and wondering what kind of special power it hid inside: was it going to be like the korok mask, perhaps to help him locate treasures underwater? Like Majora’s mask but for fishes? Like that strange mask that didn’t feel from his world that protected him from ancient weapons? Only one way to find out.

The hylian smiled widely before covering his face with it, expecting a tingling sensation at best, but his joy was short lived as intense pain traversed his whole body and all went black.

\- - -

It had been so long since the last time Link woke up because the cold was literally eating him, he opened his eyes to find himself in the snow and barely registering how different the would sounded around him as he crawled toward the slate to get more food to increase his resistance to the weather.

Sweet Hylia, he felt like an Hinox just stepped on him, even his sight was still blurry and his whole body weighted like rocks… what was he doing there again? Oh, right, the mask, what-

Wait-

He gasped, loudly, as he realized the hand now holding an elixir against the cold wasn’t even remotely like, well, his. Link blinked, finally focusing on the golden limb in front of him and freezing on the spot, for a moment not even the urgency of protecting himself managed to shake him out of the shock of what he was seeing.

The hand, his hand, was now covered in small golden scales and each finger was connected to the others with a shiny, cerulean membrane. His self preservation instinct kicked in just enough to force him to swallow the liquid in the bottle to protect himself and he raised both his hands to touch his face… only to find very familiar flippers around his face, to find a long and almost slimey headfin growing from the back of his head, to map his face and confirm that his nose was now definitely missing.

Link crawled back to the water, his mind starting to realize the reason he felt so uncomfortable around his elbows and hips was probably because he had fins trapped under his clothes that desperately needed to get out, the vague sense of suffocation probably tied to how compressed his gills were.

_… shit._ He silently mouthed while staring at his reflection. The mask wasn’t a simple tool to make his life easier, it turned him into a zora. Link bit his lips, reaching for the unfamiliar face he could see on the water: The headfin was longer than he expected and somehow on the flat side, it took him a moment to realize he was probably taking after an eel like Sidon had the traits of a shark and Muzu the ones of a stingray, and he had… smaller fins on it, cerulean ribbon like features on the top of his head, on the side of his headfin and on the fins framing his face...

Still filled with marvel and curiosity he proceeded to slowly take his clothes off, accidentally tearing many holes in his uniform with the long and sharp claws, to reveal a small, brightly colored body. All of it was golden save a small splash of white on his chest all the blue fins that almost seemed to frame it. How… fascinating. And how useful could this kind of tools could be in the future?

Zelda was probably going to understand his lack of self control and the unannounced trip if he returned with such a valuable treasure. Hell, he could even try to beg her for a chance to find eventual other ones, he had always been curious to try goron food properly or fly around like a Rito…

Wait... 

He was a zora now, did that mean he could also breathe underwater? Oh, he could already feel all the hidden treasures inn the depth calling for him, a shiver of excitement passed through his spine as he considered how many opportunities just opened for him.

If he managed to convince Zelda to let him go.

To be honest she never pressured him to keep his current role, yet Link never found the courage to step away… He sighed, scratching under his chin trying to find any edge or clasp to take the mask off, frowning when he realized nothing was there. How was he supposed to take it off? He spent a good amount of time touching around his face only to realize the mask offered no way of removal that he was aware of.

Panic started to raise in him as he used the selfie option of the slate to study his face further, sweet Hylia what if there was no way to take that mask off at all?

_I can’t believe I’ve been such an idiot!_

What if there was no way back from this? How was he even he supposed to return back to the castle looking like a giant banana fish? Who would even believe he was the hylian hero?

Oh.

Oh!

Who would even believe he was the hylian hero? A short, delighted huff escaped his lips as a mad grin appeared on his lips uncovering a row of long, pointy fangs: he had been looking for excuses to leave the castle for so long… and now he had the perfect one.

No one was going to recognize him.

He swallowed down his sense of guilt, he could at least attempt to write Zelda a message at some point to let him know he was alive but if Hylia wanted him to find that mask perhaps it was a sign.

Link got up, still unsure on his different legs, and threw his clothes in the river only keeping the slate holding belt with him. If he was going to stay a zora then he was going to embrace his new nature… and he was not going to walk back to civilization.

\- - -

The first month had been busy between organizing himself a small camp hidden near the wetlands, the only place where the weather didn’t seem to drive him crazy, and gathering tools: Link knew zora didn’t cook their food yet he couldn’t help himself from getting a large pot, some kitchen tools and a couple of crates to store his stuff.  
With all well camouflaged between algae, moss and leaves he finally proceeded to take the most important thing of all: his horse. Lunch had been almost forgotten in the stable since he stopped traveling and Link knew she had all rights to be upset with him yet the reborn zora wanted her. He missed the horrible way she used to smell under the rain, how she bit his fingers whenever he tried to reach for apples in his back, how fiercely she fought at his side whenever monsters attacked his camp.

He had been actually surprised when the mare simply looked in his direction when he finally managed to sneak closer with no hylian in sight… and let out an annoyed huff in his direction like she always did whenever he took too long to return from one of his explorations. Link took off her saddle and bridle, throwing them on the floor, and before he knew it they were both running in the night.

Oh, he loved her so much.

The following weeks had been spent making her as comfortable as possible, they took long trips at night so she could find the best prairies to graze during the day. He collected fruits for her, he collected materials in the slate and used his knowledge of materials to attempt new concoctions hoping some would work on his new and different body.

They both lived following the moment, returning near the wetlands only when Link’s scales got too dry, and the fugitive knight found himself thanking the goddess every single morning for her unexpected gift.

He still felt guilty for abandoning Zelda, sure, but after months he couldn’t just walk back in without even looking like himself and she probably already found another knight to replace him. And even if the sense of guilt was strong, he knew he didn’t want to go back.

\- - -

Fighting was now more difficult, that’s one of the things he noticed after failing to sneak on an hinox’s stomach to steal its gear: his centre of gravity was lower, his legs shorter and the tail behind his head tended to unbalance him more than anything. The only reason he didn’t die crushed under a thrown tree was because what he felt Revali’s blessing pulse through him and before he knew he was literally running as fast as the wind.

In water he was now lethal, a golden predator whose teeth never failed to close around his chosen prey, on land… it took him weeks too be even remotely competent once more. And even then most of his grace was gone, replaced by a more aggressive and forward style: he attacked giving his enemies no breaks, climbed on bigger ones using his claws and bit the weakest parts of their exposed skin, it almost felt an animalistic style… and he didn’t mind.

Not to mention Lizalfos meat was... definitely better than he expected.

He could feel Lunch judging him whenever he returned with that kind of prey instead of good fruits but he didn’t care

The second blessing he rediscovered were Mipha and Daruk’s when he fell from a cliff, whenever he felt in danger or stressed his skin seemed prone to cover itself in a thin layer of mucus and that didn’t agree with free climbing. When the rain surprised him he was meters from the ground, pointy rocks were everywhere below him, and for a moment

He felt Daruk’s power cover his skin and instead of impaling himself on the sharp stones he simply hit them but the scaled didn’t break, protecting him instead. Mipha’s energy was what he felt next, Link knew he broke some ribs and one of his legs but after a long moment he was healthy again.

Last but not less welcome was the gerudo champion’s blessing: he wasn’t just a simple eel, he was apparently an electric one and he loved it. It took a long while to notice it but after any battle his skin wasn’t just covered in that slimy and horrible stuff that at times almost made his weapons slip away, there was even a slight tension that he couldn’t explain until he decided to sit near his horse right after fighting a group of moblins: the hair of her mane raising up to follow his arm made him realize what that was, static electricity.

Add some weeks of practice and he now knew how to generate electric shocks strong enough to kick enemies away from him.

One night, after taking down a blue lynel and discovering how awful their meat tasted he simply stood there fully enjoying his new self. Life had never been so good.

\- - -

His first contact with the Zora had been an accident, his brain didn’t register Gaddison’s presence as a threat since she used to be one of his closest friend in the domain, and when she stepped near the small body of water where he was taking a nap he simply… returned to the surface to greet her.

They both froze looking at each other, one surprised by the unexpected meeting and the other by his own stupidity.

_  
_

Shit.

He immediately returned underwater and swam away.

The contacts that followed were less accidental, he could tell they were interested in him and he recognized both Dunma and Bazz between the patrol members a couple of times. He still left for long periods of time, often asking Lunch to stay behind and wait for him wherever she felt safe and happy: the last thing he needed was to be seen with ‘Link’s horse’. Perhaps the mare wasn’t anything special to the eyes, her fur was brown while her mane was color cream like her ‘socks’ but they had been inseparable and he was positive any of his old friends would recognize her.

Link took the habit of keeping an eye on them even if it occasionally translated into him being spotted by the zora as well. Still, as long as they kept distance from him he didn’t mind- he even managed to overhear some talks about a ‘feral zora’ and decided he liked that. If they thought him a wild animal he’d make sure they believed him one, hopefully that’d convince them to keep distance.

The first time he actually approached a whole group was during one of his late breakfasts: he just took some delicious durians from his slate, sinking the sharp fangs in its wooden shell and looking for the fresh pulp, when he heard commotion coming from below. Link frowned moving inside of Bone Lake enough to take a look just to find a group of five zora, Gaddison included, dealing with almost twenty Lizalfos that apparently managed to sneak on them.

Oh, no… they weren’t enough to deal with them. He bit his lips not even realizing his teeth were sharp enough to piece the skin, and hid the slate under a rock after pulling out the worst sword in his collection, a rusty one he had planned to throw in an enemy camp nearby during the next thunderstorm and rushed out in help.

The whole battle was brutal and he dealt with most of them on his own even after breaking his weapon: Link hit them with branches, bit them and used his glaws to rip open the tender skin under the big lizards’s chins, in all of this he still found the focus to act like a madman and laugh to sell his ‘feral zora’ act even more. By the time it was over he was covered in blood, his pupils were dilated to the point his eyes seemed almost black and he felt so SO alive: fighting for himself was one thing, protecting others gave him something different, something he loved.

This was the perfect life: freedom and the ability to do what was right whenever he wanted without being a public figure or having heavy expectations on his shoulders. Beautiful.

“Hello…?”

He returned to his senses when one of the green soldiers he couldn’t recognize, probably a new recruit, tried to approach him. He already exposed himself way too much and even if his behaviour had been anything but similar to his old self Link knew it was time to retreat. One long jump and he was deep in the waters once more, hopefully they were too tired to follow him.

\- - -

Turns out they were but that didn’t mean his solitude was destined to last forever. Not differently than what happened with Gaddison, he didn’t notice a certain someone approaching and by the time Link heard a branch snap in front of him Sidon was already only meters away from him with the most disgusted expression on his face the ex hylian had ever seen.

He was in his camp, how did he even find him- the patrols probably managed to locate his position and the prince decided the best idea was approaching a potentially dangerous madman, of course. And he didn’t even hear him until he walked too close for comfort. How in the name of Hylia was such a giant shark so… sneaky?

He couldn’t even just… leap away and flee, that was his camp, the slate was barely hidden under a pile of leaves and if he didn't want to raise too many questions and live in peace in the only area where his skin didn’t turn into sandpaper he couldn’t let anyone find that.

Link licked his lips before baring his teeth- it felt awful lying to him, somehow, but after moons living this lie he suspected Sidon’d just get mad at him if he simply signed ‘oh, hello, long time no see’. Not that he wanted to.

Goddess, he felt like the worst of Hyrule right now, somehow.

Returning to his sense he followed Sidon’s gaze trying to figure out what was making him so uncomfortable. His… wildberries? He had been swallowing them in handfuls for a while, was that the reason the other zora seemed on the verge of vomiting? When the prince finally decided to look away from them Link simply raised his hand above his head, opening the mouth without breaking eye contact and letting some of the berries fall between his teeth.

“Sweet Hylia!”

The way his mimetic scales, mostly visible when he did the zora equivalent of blushing and had his face turning a bright blue, turned in a different way than usual all over his body giving the impression that the color drained from him gave Link the confirmation he needed. Good, he now knew how to do something disgusting enough to hopefully keep even more people away from him.

“Uhm…” Sidon sighed kneeling to the floor, probably trying not to look too intimidating in that situation. Somehow Link didn’t like that, the zora shouldn’t be on the floor in front of him, but he still kept his total silence without moving while the other studied his surroundings “You truly were raised by hylians, weren’t you?”

Link blinked, so that was the local rumor now? To think he had been so careful…

“I mean, my knowledge is limited but this does look like a typical hylian or gerudo camp, doesn’t it?” The zora paused leaving the silver spear he carried at his side on the ground. If Link wasn’t so desperate to keep his ruse he would have scolded him for such a stupid move.

Then again he did way worse during his life and he probably didn’t look like a true predator to the other right now.

“Do you… understand me?” Link gave him no reply, still simply staring at him in silence, and after a long moment he saw Sidon offer him one of his hands with the palm open and emit the most annoying sound he ever heard in his whole life. It was a low pitched hum, something he wouldn’t have been able to hear when he was hylian, and it vaguely reminded him of how some dog owners would call their pets.

Was he… trying to coo him in the zora equivalent of a hylian talking to a feral puppy?

The knight blinked a couple of times before showing his teeth as a warning, while it felt wrong with such a wonderful friend like Sidon he couldn’t bring himself to admit the truth and that seemed like a good way to let the prince know how that weird thing was unwelcome.

“Okay, friend-” of course Sidon would call a potentially dangerous and mad stranger friend “I will not do that again. I’m just glad you’re not running away from me. So… do you understand me?”

Of course he wasn’t running away, the slate was right there and if anyone found it it’d have been a disaster. He noted to find a better hiding spot and take it out only when truly needed.

“Maybe you speak a different language?”

The words that followed were something the knight didn’t even recognize as one of the current languages or dialects and when he received no answer the prince seemed to try a different one…

How was Link supposed to get out of there? Of course that silly giant had to infiltrate his safe spot, he was even trying to be his friend. It was somehow adorable, for a moment he felt warm, but it wasn’t a good time to think about how the royal family of the Zora had always been like that.

“Maybe I could spend some time with you? It’s the first time we meet a zora who isn’t from the Domain and I won’t deny I’m incredibly curious about your presence here.”

The tail behind Link started moving slowly forming slow waves as Link considered his options: his best bet, since the prince seemed fascinated by his mystery, was probably luring him away allowing him to follow his movements then rushing back and grabbing the slate, only the slate, before swimming away. He was going to relocate his camp at the first occasion but for now the priority was making sure no one could connect him to his old self.

Link dropped the last berries to the ground before slowly reaching for the swallow bow he used for hunting. He could see Sidon’s posture shifting, his muscles tensing and his hand moving to be in the perfect position to grab the spear to defend himself if needed. _Good_ Link told himself while a tired grin appeared on his face.__

_ _The prince frowned, probably confused by Link’s behaviour, but as soon as he tilted his head telling him to follow him he got up as well, weapon in hand and ready to walk behind him without questions._ _

_ _Link took a big breath, uncomfortable in the current situation. He got this, no one needed to know what a mess he made with his life nor how desperately wanted out of his luxurious life._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I spent the last two days reading eel facts, I AM READY.
> 
> Who am I kidding, I'm not, english is so hard and I can never get across what I'd really like. Anyway as ibijau said Link's theme song in this chapter was basically "Let it go"...


	3. How can I say no to that smile?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The wonderful Ibijau decided to draw for me the wildberries scene from the last chapter and I am living for it.
> 
> [Here](https://ibijau.tumblr.com/post/187507324528)

Link didn’t know how long they spent simply wandering around the wetlands: he tried more than once to leave the prince behind but there were no places where he knew he would outrun him and even if a couple of times the idea of taking advantage of local groups of monsters tempted him the knight knew he’d never put his friend in danger only to get out of troubles himself.

At least he didn’t seem to mind the long, pointless walk? Quite the contrary, apparently, whenever he tried to sneakily look in his direction he always caught the prince searching the horizon for something with an almost longing expression. Was he also… secretly wishing to leave? How to blame him, he was offering even less conversation than usual and he had no ‘champion’ or ‘almost brother in law’ status to make him an interesting company. Goddess. Guilt aside that felt great.

Despite being more covered in slime than usual, thanks to the self-defense mechanism he still had to learn how to control, his mouth felt absolutely dry as they wandered. How to leave Sidon behind when he was apparently the fastest swimmer of the Domain? 

The answer came in the form of another Zora patrol: he had never been happier to see Dunma before, her simple presence gave him the perfect excuse to tell the prince to leave. He turned, his head fin flipping nervously, and pointed toward the other Zoras with a grunt.

The red Zora blinked in surprise, golden eyes filled with confusion, then he seemed to process what was happening.Or, well, what Link wanted him to believe.

“Oh, no no, my friend…” He sounded apologetic and almost embarrassed now “I wasn’t looking for my people, I was merely curious about your unexpected arrival near our territory and-”

Sweet Hylia, he was as talkative as he remembered.... Link took one step toward him, once again showing his teeth and making sure to stretch his fins as widely as possible trying to imitate the way lynels used to huff their manes to intimidate their enemies. He even stomped his foot to show him how much he wanted to be left alone.

Sidon’s reaction wasn’t what he expected.

The bright red of his scales turned blue not only on the area of his face, the place where it usually changed color when Link managed to fluster him, but he could see spots of blue even on the shoulders and hisheadfin as the giant shark’s eyes darted between him and the other zoras who probably already spotted them.

Hell, if Link didn’t know it was impossible he’d swear the prince shrunk on the spot and Sidon apparently thought the same looking at how he seemed to try to hide behind his silver spear.

“Uh…” Sidon’s voice was strained, the man seemed to choke in his own words “I appreciate the sentiment but…” the other started before blushing even more, his mimetic scales showing off the blue even on his elbows and knuckles now. Link just… stared. What in the name of Hylia- 

“Oh, dear, you probably don’t know what this means, am I wrong?”

No, he didn’t and the knight had to fight the urge to sign Sidon stop acting weird- he still was the wild zora of the wetlands who apparently didn’t know how to talk or communicate with others, he couldn’t just-

“Please lower your fins, it’s… a quite explicit courtship behaviour.”

Since he turned into a zora himself his fins had never felt more responsive as he flattened them against his body. Great, he apparently flirted with the prince instead of scaring him off… but how was he even supposed to know? From his experience most animals puffed their fur or displayed extra membranes to appear bigger only when they needed to look intimidating.

“As I thought…” Sidon let out a nervous chuckle covering his face with one hand “You didn’t know. Of course you didn’t know, what else was I expecting from a naked zora who lives outside the domain?”

Naked? Link blinked twice before taking a quick look at the prince’s body, as far as he could see the other also had pretty much everything on display. Wait, he was only going to make things worse if Sidon noticed him staring at his definitely not covered abs. 

At least the misunderstanding seemed cleared already? 

While the knight was still trying to figure out how to proceed from there Sidon started chuckling once more while looking at him. What now? Following his gaze he could tell the other was actually staring at his head fin but Link didn’t bother to check 

“My apologies, you didn’t know and I ended up embarrassing you as well.” He let out a sigh “Well, it seems this meeting was less productive than I hoped but that doesn’t come as a surprise, I was definitely underprepared.”

Oh, Link didn’t like where this conversation was going. He wanted Sidon to go back disappointed, forget about whatever he heard about the feral zora of the wetlands and enjoy his time between his people, he definitely didn’t want to see him attempting to figure out ways to befriend him.

The knight’s foot stomped on the muddy floor once more and he grunted loudly pointing at the other zora who apparently decided to enjoy the whole show from afar. Come on, Sidon, you adorable idiot...

“Yes, you’re right, I should go with them.” Victory! “But I will be back soon and next time I promise you things will go better.”

Oh, no...

\- - -

Turns out not only climbing was hard when he got nervous and his body decided it was a good idea to cover itself on mucus, walking also managed to be a challenge on any kind of flat surface. He noticed it when he attempted to run on some rocks and fell face down on the hard surface.

Okay. He needed boots. Or something that'd fit to be worn under his weirdly shaped feet. Uh... the talon on the only toe was sharp, probably something evolution kept to cling on prey in water, so he needed something open. Sandals? Those were found only in Lurelin village and Sidon had some kind of celebrity status in there, it was probably a terrible idea showing how civilized he could be in that place. Maybe he could make something himself?

He… was going to figure something out not to find himself unprepared if he had to fight in a building for whatever reason.

Anyway, the slate was still where he left it when Link returned to his camp and he didn’t spend long packing his stuff before leaving with what he considered essential for long term survival in the wild: the pot. Goodbye humid leaves that served as his bed for weeks, goodbye wooden boxes stuffed with fruits, he was going to live anyway.

What next? He frowned stopping by the river to wash some of the mucus and the dirt that stuck to it and considered his next steps. If the area around lake Floria wasn’t so dangerous for a Zora due to the daily thunderstorms (and the electric dragon passing there too often for comfort) he’d consider moving there. Ebon mountain would be another valid option, the lake at the top had a bad reputation between hylians and many would avoid it afraid of never finding love if they did, too bad Lunch couldn’t climb there.

Ugh… the wetlands still were his best bet uh?

He knew he had to learn to rely on the slate as little as possible and that meant two things: he had to keep Lunch closer, he couldn’t leave her in any green pasture and then use the shrines to teleport freely, and he needed to build a proper stash of weapons and food. The second part was actually quite… exciting? Having access to the time stopping powers of the slate made ridicolously easy when it came down to store things fresh, without it he'd have to learn how to properly take care of his supplies. He couldn't wait for it.

There was a cave near bone cave, he could probably set things up in there: it still was a territory with enough lizalfos to keep most travelers and zora away and if he put some good traps at the entrance he was probably going to keep curious noses away too. Yep, that could work! 

With a couple of presses he was already at Monya Toma’s shrine. His plan was to go and fetch Lunch where he left her, a now peaceful pond near Irch Plain, and take his lovely steed near the domain. Destination? Rabia Plain. The only person he had ever seen there was Kass when they found the shrine and as far as he knew even the zora patrols had little interest in it since that side was pretty much guarded by a Divine Beast.

Link let out a confident huff, he got this, he just needed to scare the others away.

\- - -

“Okay, I admit it, It was reckless of me approaching him like this without any real plan.”

For Sidon there was time to act like a proper prince and be a beacon of elegance and positivity… and then he had his moments of privacy with his father when he allowed himself to be a bit more childish than he’d ever dare to show in public. 

Resting on King Dorephan’s large stomach as he nuzzled his head the prince let out a loud sigh before closing his eyes.

“I just… I needed a distraction. The champion’s disappearance is still worrying me so much… I know our men are trying their best but after all he did for us I still wish I could be of help. And now I run around like a green recruit trying to approach a savage zora without planning ahead, ”

Disappearing without a single word or message wasn't like Link,something had to be wrong and not being able to fix it was incredibly frustrating. He at least let himself enjoy his father’s scratches on the head fin, where even his long arms wouldn’t normally be able to reach, if there was anything with the power to relax him it was that.

“I understand how you feel about our Link, son, but I admit I have been worried about you lately as well..” The king emerged from the water, careful not to let his child fall, and rested his back against the marble borders of the royal pool “I’ve been told you’ve been neglecting your meals, they brought you even hearty salmons from the Rito Village and you barely had a bite. Muzu informed me you are awfully distracted during his lessons and whenever you join our soldiers for patrol your gaze wanders toward the horizon instead of focusing on the path you’re supposed to follow.”

Sidon allowed himself a very unprincely groan. He knew he was probably disappointing or worrying many of his subjects but it had been increasingly hard for him to focus on his duties or even his health: how could he eat a fancy fish knowing his best friend could be out there with no food at all? How could he keep his eyes on the road knowing Link could be anywhere? Still…

“I apologize. For everything. I will try to focus better on my job and I will let our guards take care of the stranger, after all he doesn’t seem like a threat for us.”

“Now now…” the king pulled him closer in a big hug, his chin gently rubbing against Sidon’s head “It’s okay, we all worry about our loved ones.” Sidon’s lips pressed together to create a thin line. Loved ones, uh? Fortunately enough Dorephan moved on with the conversation before he could truly stop thinking about that. “As I worry about you. And even if I want you to be more careful in the future I am not against you approaching this stranger again. I haven’t seen you truly interested in anything since our friend disappeared.”

“Father?”

“I admit I’m rather curious myself, it’s only my size that prevents me from seeking this young wild man who somehow managed to live away from here for so long. Hyrule’s weather isn’t the kindest with Zora skin, I wonder where he hid all this time.”

The king chuckled, each sound like a gentle earthquake under Sidon’s body, and the prince’s head fin started moving in gentle waves with amusement. Knowing his father also shared his interest in that yellow mystery made things a bit easier even if he still felt guilty over not spending all his energies trying to find Link.

“That being said, you should inform your friend that next time he wants to flash you with his fins he should at least ask for my blessing first.”

He immediately straightened his back, cheeks turning blue.

“father?”

Of course the soldiers reported what they saw during the patrol, including the absolutely indecent display the eel put up for him. Sidon knew the other zora wasn’t courting him, still… sweet Hylia, it had been such a humiliating moment! That was the kind of behaviour to keep in the privacy of a private pool, not in the middle of an open field.

“What? Can’t a father request a proper meeting with whoever is courting his son before he gives away his sapphire?”

“DAD!”

The larger zora laughed once again, his voice booming in the large pool.

“If you’ve been informed about… that… you must also know that’s not the truth: he wasn’t courting me, his seemed more an attempt to mirror how land dwelling creatures assert their dominance or aggressiveness. Fascinating, truly, even if rather unexpected. I am positive his wasn’t a show of interest because as soon as I made it clear the meaning between us he lo… oh…”

“Oh?”

There was a long moment of silence as realization hit Sidon, he hid his face behind his hands and let out a frustrated groan causing Dorephan to adjust himself once more to be able to look down in his direction.

“... he flattened them.”

Dorephan simply replied with a blink.

“He flattened his fins! His skin got all those black dots too because he was embarrassed! He understood what I said!”

That yellow blobfish managed to fool him AND his men, they all considered him more or less a savage being yet he was there listening to them and mocking them too! How much of his wild behaviour was actually true, how much a facade? He surprised him eating fruits, ugh, so that was at least genuine even if disgusting. His camp also seemed clearly hylian or gerudo inspired because no zora would require a cooking pot, ritos would prefer higher surface that allowed to see the land around and gorons…. Okay, he had no idea of how gorons liked to travel but he was positive it had to be different.

Sweet Hylia, that stranger managed to trick him so well.

“I was a fool, father!” Sidon theatrically raised his arms with the childish attitude he only reserved for those private moments “I was lied to and now I must bear the heartbreak.” he brought both hands at his heart and let himself roll down the adipose hill that was his father’s belly just to splash in the warm water below. He could hear Dorephan’s laugh even before returning to the surface and when he did the prince simply joined him.

“But no more, I will not allow him to fool me any longer, I-”

“Sidon?”

His father’s suddenly pensive tone got him off guard making him drop the little act.

“Yes?”

Dorephan lowered himself in the water until he was barely above surface level in order to see Sidon at eye level.

“Have you considered he may not speak to you even if he understands because he doesn’t know how to?”

The ‘like Link when he lost his voice’’ was left unsaid but both heard it. Sidon gasped, suddenly realizing it was very likely the truth: zora were social creatures, they had strong bonds with family members and others around them, for one to choose a life of isolation instead… he probably lacked the tools needed to be party of their society.

“Dad....” Sidon moved close enough to press the thin membrane of their forehead together “Dad, you’re a genius!”

Now he only had to find Muzu and get a couple of things sorted out before his next attempt 

\- - -

Living in the wild without relying on the Sheikah slate was way funnier than Link anticipated: he carved himself another secret spot by the small, unnamed pond between Rutala River and Ruto mountain, and there he started creating his second little house. 

The cave by Bone Lake was too exposed for his tastes and in the end he picked a place where he knew almost no one would look: monsters avoided the area because the Divine Beast was right above it and as long as he was careful to build everything against the rocky mountain wall in a way travelers couldn’t spot it from the road no one usually bothered to climb down that way.

His new home was no more than a little hut with a roof made of huge palm leaves, he didn’t even bother to close the walls since his body seemed to appreciate a bit of rain and when it got too windy he could just opt to rest in the pond instead. Not to mention resting there allowed him to enjoy the sight of Naydra passing by as well, beautiful.

On the other hand what truly was absolutely waterproof and had been prepared with utmost care was his food storage: he used a natural small inclination in the mountain at his own advantage creating a well ventilated corner repaired from the rain. There he could hang what he wanted from rods he placed horizontally near the ceiling, he could store things in small hollows he created with tools… it was perfect. 

And while he still had to figure out how to hang food out to dry in the sun in a place where it rained every other day he knew he’d figure something out, Link just loved living there. Not to mention Lunch wasn’t too distant, either, and knowing he just needed to cross the river to see his beloved made him feel... good.

Link’s stash of weapons kept growing as well, as did his supply of flint and wood. Not that he truly needed any primitive tool to light up a fire, a fire arrow or a flame sword always served the purpose well enough, yet the knight enjoyed that kind of challenge. 

Something else he enjoyed? Properly processing his hunts. He always cut off the best pieces storing them in his device, now he had to be careful with what he had and how to process it.

There was something cathartic in spending hours simply cutting pieces, breaking bones and separating parts according to needs and uses… even the simple process of removing the skin and attempting to cure it had been fascinating.

Not to mention he was finally learning how to tan skins, how to make trinkets out of bones, how tendons were not only useful to make a good broth but also tools once treated properly. What a wonderful world opened right in front of him and Link only had to thank a book he… err.. _ Borrowed _ from someone in Hateno: a manual about field dressing and emergency survival he how worshipped.

Link hummed, contently, as he sat down on the grass in front of a nice, warm fire. He loved resting like that in the evening, scaled fingers gently touching page after page as the man learnt new things, he just started a most interesting chapter about the many ways animal fat could be preserved for the winter and Link couldn’t wait to read more about it. 

What a wonderful evening: only him, his book and the most wonderful sil-

“Found you!”

Whooop, there went the book, directly between the flames as he got up grabbing his weapon. W… why did he do that? He knew his brain processed it as the most efficient way to get rid of it and keep up with his farce, only a fool would use it as fuel, and his muscles acted on their own but… why? Rest in peace you beautiful and useful bastard.

Link hissed in Sidon’s direction, for once showing actual irritation and not faking it. How was a shark so sneaky? And why didn’t he notice a giant zora climbing his way down from the main road? Sidon wasn’t exactly easy to miss.

Anyway, there they were again. Both wary of each other, even if for completely different reasons, and both unsure on how to proceed next. Link sighed , the prince seemed slightly concerned by the sight of the burning book but his attention was once more all on him. What was so interesting in a yellow weirdo that seemed to attract Sidon? Then perhaps he had a thing for smelly feral looking people in general considering his enthusiasm when Link arrived for the very first time in the Domain.

Ugh…

“Pardon my intrusion, my friend, I didn’t mean to startle you but I found something I think you would like ”

He fumbled with his satchel for a moment before taking out of it a book, a large one, about… sign language. He even recognized it, vaguely, from one of his memories with Mipha. It was for kids, even small ones who didn’t know how to read, and had countless illustrations. What was he planning to…

Oh...

Oh, no, you adorable idiot…

“I know you understand me, the way you immediately folded your fins away after… uh…” the prince coughed, nervously, and Link mentally slapped himself. Looks like he betrayed himself after all “A-anyway! It occurred to me that you could be in need of help. Not in surviving in the wild, of course, you seem rather skilled in this even if your methods are.... Unique. At least for a zora. No, I was wondering… is the reason you’re avoiding us that you don’t know how to express yourself? If that’s the case… allow me to assist.”

Nope, as much as the idea of the occasional company of Sidon didn’t really bother him, quite the contrary, allowing him to visit wasn’t an option. It was just… too dangerous, Link knew he was going to blow his cover away.

“... Please?”

Sidon’s hopeful gaze and almost shy smile made him feel weak, guilt and something else building inside his chest once more. Against his better judgement he replied with a nod.


	4. Was running away truly a good idea?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Link is still totally oblivious to a lot of things but that doesn't stop him from accidentally proposing to Sidon a couple of times.

Link could barely believe he truly sat for hours with the prince in front of a dying fireplace, slowly pretending to learn sign language from him. Sidon was so eager to teach, so genuine in his enthusiasm, even the knight found himself unable to push him away even if it meant adding more lies to the pile.

He was just so… cute. And Link hated himself for being so weak to what was probably some residual ‘big-brother-feel’ from his past life - not that he recognized himself in any way as the Link of one hundred years ago – but he couldn’t help himself as he slowly moved his hands to form the word apple for the fifth time in a row.

“Correct, my friend! You’re so good at this!”

And again with the unnecessary praises, he used to think it was something reserved as ‘Link’ for his status as a hero but no, Sidon was genuinely someone who just… loved to cover others with compliments, wasn’t he?

Fish. Spear. Wave. Water.

Link slowly repeated words after him, hands moving with care as he spelled them out: he had his quirks while speaking and one of the most important things was not allowing them in a conversation with someone who saw him speak before.

He sighed, tossing one last log on the embers of his campfire and looking at his eager mentor who was more than ready to restart the small list of words they ‘learnt together’. It was… nice being with him, the months of isolation made him appreciate quiet company a lot more. Not to mention not being constantly in the middle of people looking up to him with high expectations made him less wary of having others around.

Anyway.. as much as he liked being with the prince, the five years without meeting him almost made him forget that, the longer they spent together the heavier the feelings of guilt grew with the fear of being discovered. Not that anyone in the right mind would suspect he changed species like that, but… wasn’t it time to tell him to leave?

Oh, the hell with it, he spent so long on his own, he could at least enjoy a few more minutes while figuring out how to spell him he wanted to be left alone...

“Now, the next word is net...”

A tired smile appeared on his lips as Sidon slowly proceeded to show him the correct movements to express that ‘new’ word, somehow Link was amused by how many swimming and fishing terms the other tried to teach him while completely forgetting other parts of a normal conversation like feelings and such. Then again, perhaps it was due to cultural differences between zora and Hylians, after all they were born in special pools and for the little he remembered their eggs hatched in water and spent at least a year as tadpoles simply swimming around before mutating into their amphibian form. Oh, he was glad he skipped that phase.

His musing over how zora seemed to prioritize certain things over others didn’t pass unnoticed and when he raised his eyes from the other’s hands to his face Sidon was just staring at him with slight concern.

“I’m trying to teach too many words, am I not?”

Link blinked, thinking about it for a moment: he used to talk with his hands and this lesson seemed a joke but the prince was probably right, they spent their time going word after word and for any person trying to learn sign language for the first time it was probably… a lot.

“… eh.”

His reply was followed by a small shrug and a nod, he couldn’t look too confident if he wanted to appear completely inexperienced.

“I see… well, I thank you for your time-” Pardon? If anything it was Link who took him from his royal duties, if the other taught him how to say ‘no’ or ‘thank you’ he would have replied with one of those but no. The ‘zora’ at least knew how to sign tuna, though, so those were his small victories? “- perhaps you could keep this book and try to learn from it? It’s illustrated, even if you don’t know how to read it’s possible to figure things out. I just...”

Golden eyes darted to the fireplace at their side and Link chuckled. No, he wasn’t going to throw that guide too between the flames, he already regretting throwing the other one in and even if he didn’t really need any guide to sign language… he was going to keep it. To make Sidon happy.

He hummed gently to reassure the other and pointed toward is makeshift shelter. If he could store food to keep it dry in there a book was going to… survive in it. The prince squinted looking at Link’s small building before looking at him and then the book while processing what the other was trying to say.

“Oh! You’re telling me you’ll keep it there! That’s wonderful, friend, I am certain with time we will manage to teach you how to have a proper conversation.”

The prince smiled widely, shiny teeth greeting the knight, and Link felt both happy and worried at the same time. How… how was he going to drop this whole thing now? Being mute for once was an advantage for him, he didn’t risk to accidentally spill any truth, but if he started to talk in other ways…

Oh, well, he was going to think about it later.

Link offered Sidon a small smile reaching forward and grabbing the book with one hand and gently placing his other hand on the prince’s in a friendly way. It was… probably unpleasant for the other, his fingers were still covered in a thin layer of sticky slime, and- oh, no.

Sidon’s scales were completely blue again.

Okay, what did he do this time?

He tilted his head in confusion, head fin slowly moving behind his head and muscles tensing as the other stared at his hand like it could jump and bite him at any second. What in the name of Hylia-

“I… uhm… I am aware you’re probably not used to our costumes but this is another act of intimacy. We don’t -ahem- touch hands. Or each other. Unless there’s a deep bond.”

The knight blinked, tail nervously flickering behind his back.

“One isn’t supposed to… Well… One touches only their beloved or their children like this.”

Bullshit. BULLSHIT.

He could perfectly remember Sidon reaching for his hands after the whole ordeal in Vah Ruta and the last time he checked they weren’t a couple. Oh… wait, perhaps it had a different meaning because he was hylian and basically his brother.

Link bit his lips, barely noticing Sidon’s golden eyes darting down for a second to follow the movement, and sloooowly moved his hands back, raising them in the process like a prisoner with an arrow pointed at his head. He wasn’t flirting and he needed to make it clear.

Sidon cleared his throat finally looking away and scratching behind his fin.

“Right… uh… of course you didn’t know. Anyway since our conversation already took an embarrassing turn… forgive me for bringing this up but perhaps next time I could bring you something to wear?”

Another skeptical glance from Link’s side, now Sidon was clearly messing up with him. 

“Mh-”

With a grunt as loud and as annoyed as he could emit, Link pointed with no shame at Sidon’s chest, first, and then to his hips. Something to wear. Really? He wasn’t blind, he knew zora had no use of clothes beside some random jewelry or decoration, so if Sidon wanted to make fun of him-

“Oh, no no… It would be for your neck…?”

Link blinked once more, confused. For… the neck? Zora ran around with their butts in the wind but the neck had to be covered?

“This is where our weakest scales are, you probably know that, and… it’s indecent for a zora of any social status to expose it. If you wanted I could-”

No. Link’s arms raised in front of him as he created a big cross in front of himself, he wasn’t going to wear anything that reminded him of how tight the collars of his uniforms could be nor jewelry that’d remind him how he had been forced more than once to wear up ridiculous stuff only to be appropriately dressed for his status.

If he didn’t care when he wore Gerudo jewelry during his mission he did now, he didn’t want any fancy necklace just to please the local zora, not even his best friend.

“I see…” Sidon’s embarrassment didn’t seem to fade and after a long moment of awkward silence he simply got up, now ready to climb his way back to the domain “Well, I apologize for making things uncomfortable once more. I will take my leave and… I will give you a few days to learn from the book a bit more. I will visit soon, my friend.”

The knight felt… slightly bitter. Why? He had no idea. Anyway it time for the other to go and both knew it, Link didn’t even look in his direction as he walked back to his little tent and Sidon jumped in the river below.

\- - -

Link’s first attempt to tan a pelt had been a complete disaster: he fleshed it removing all bits of meat and fat still attached to it, put it in water with some rock salt to start the treatment and… and that’s where disaster struck. As soon as he removed the pelt from the small basin he carved in a rock the fur just started falling off in chunks, much to his disappointment, and even his attempt to use oak bark to get the tannic acid he needed for the process, he could at least try to take it to the end instead of tossing it away, failed miserably. By the end of the process the deer skin he tried to turn into a proper fur was a rotten mess.

The second attempt had been equally miserable: the fur didn’t fall off but the leather itself turned as hard as a rock and when Link tossed it on the ground after taking it out of the small basin… it just kept its shape.

It was ridiculous, he wasn’t even able to get to the part that required him to use tannic acid to cure the leather, THAT was also going to be ‘fun’ considering he could barely remember the list of plants and fruits that contained it but the book giving the information he needed was now gone. To think all he wanted was to make enough stuff to cover himself and especially his horse once winter hit, yet all he created was the most horrible crap.

Too thick. Too thin. It breaks too easily.

He was lucky he was a healthy zora with a huge appetite and that he could still store excess of meat in his slate by visiting Lunch, the now official slate guardian, and stashing all insane. For what he didn’t really plan to use even in future? He took his happy trips around Hyrule leaving them in front of stables at night, the excited squeals of Gotter finding half a deer in front of the cooking pot had been a true delight. It somehow warmed his heart more than when he waited for other people to find his gifts, probably because that man loved good food as much as he did, it was… endearing.

Anyway, the meat itself was more of a side product at this point, his goal was to learn how to properly tan leather and create soft, warm pelts. And he was failing at that.

Deer hides, he found out, had the best smell and were a bit easier to work, he really hoped to be able to make a good blanket to leave on his horse’s back before it got too cold. If things didn’t work he’d just take her to a warmer place and wait until spring. 

It just needed to be somewhere far away from people, even if it meant riding her all the way to Taobab grassland, Link didn’t want to lose her to eventual horse lovers who saw how beautiful and strong his partner was.

The scales of his hands itched after finishing to scrub the last pelt and he sat down looking at all the things he tried to make that week, some trinkets in wood included. Well, he had all the time he wanted to figure things out.

\- - -

The next few weeks had been incredibly pleasant. Link would spend most of his time failing with his pelts, hunting, riding on Lunch’s back and… having fun. After five years of stagnation it felt amazing to be out again, discovering new things and trying different foods. Even if at times things managed to be a bit unpleasant something always managed to surprise him in a positive way and it only made Link feel more daring, more interested in pushing his limits.

Yes, perhaps the gerudo desert and Death mountain were a big NO for his body now… but he had the whole sea to see. While salt water was unpleasant on his gills the colors of the sea was a sight to behold and all the new fishes he could finally reach represented a new, exciting culinary discovered. Lionfishes, for example, offered the juiciest filet once their spines were removed (only the tips were actually poisonous and he also discovered that the hard way), lobsters had the loveliest crunch under his sharp teeth and… well, turns out he had a knack for shark meat too. It just felt a bit weird since his brother-in-law was technically speaking one. 

He would check on his horse, take care of her, then leave for Lurelin village and spend his days fishing by the beaches of Eventide Island, he even managed to exchange some rudimentary tools with the people living in the settlement without using a single word. Link loved having a proper fishing rod, no matter how useless it was for a Zora… 

And while winter was approaching he could call himself proud of his wonderful stash of food, supplies and wood. He could already tell his cold resistance had already been increased, zora probably had some kind of natural protection due to their closeness to Mount Lanayru, and he was ready to adapt when necessary. Hell, if things went bad he still had his ruby circlet in the slate.

Most zora also seemed to accept his presence and instead of curiously looking down in his direction whenever they could (According to Sidon most of his habits were more than baffling for them all), preferring to ignore Link and proceeding their way. It was perfect.

The only one who actively visited was the prince himself but he seemed to respect Link’s desire to be left alone and they saw each other no more than once each month. He would sit by the fire, Sidon would either stay in the pond or sit nearby and talk while Link worked on his things. It was mostly irrelevant stuff for Link, he forgot most of the faces he saw in the stables and even in the domain he didn’t met most of the zora, but… he liked the sound of Sidon’s voice. And he could tell the other needed to talk, while he seemed to have a wonderful relationship with his father (a long, lost part of him felt jealous of that) the prince couldn’t exactly talk lowly of other nobles with him.

That and… something else.

Link didn’t know exactly what was going on with him but something seemed… off. He would often take long trips around Hyrule, probably something related to political relationships, and whenever he returned the zora’s mood was generally bad. 

Whenever that happened Link would actually drop his current project, usually another pelt that’d anyway end up in the pile of failed attempts, and interact with him with a few signs, offer him something to eat and accepted the silence, most of the time only getting information about the rito or other hylian settlements. He was supposed to be a wild zora who hated company, that was true, but Sidon still was his best friend and seeing him like that… Link hated it.

‘_ What wrong _’

That afternoon he purposefully used clumsy and simple gestures to ask, even faking some uncertainty between the first and second word, yet Sidon’s eyes widened and shined with sudden life staring at his hands first then at the eel’s blue eyes. 

…

Right, it was probably the first time he used words outside their little lessons and the first time he started a conversation as well.

“I… my apologies, I’m ruining the mood today, am I not?”

He wasn’t quite sure of what mood Sidon was talking about but Link didn’t reply, simply waiting for the other to explain himself 

“I…” the red zora stopped, looking down at his own hands and letting out a sad, heavy sigh “I am failing to help a dear friend and… I feel like a complete failure for it.”

Helping a friend? While his days as hero and captain of the guards were now part of the past if it meant bringing the smile back on his friend’s face Link was more than ready to try to help once more. He would just have to be careful not to show his involvement and pretend he had nothing to do with whatever was awaiting him.

Link raised his hands once more, now carefully spelling letter by letter since he couldn’t remember if they studied that word together or not.

‘_ E x p l a i n _’

“Oh, no, I shouldn’t burden you with my worries, I probably already overstepped my boundaries if you noticed something isn’t as it should be and I should probably leave before making things worse.”

Link’s fin flattened against his body, a natural reaction to unpleasant emotions he found out over time, and as soon as the prince got up the yellow zora quickly grabbed his wrists, careful only to touch where the silver armlets were, and forced him back on the floor. Golden eyes studied him with confusion and Link quickly proceeded to wonder how to make himself clear without words.

“Mh!”

A stern hum as he let go, pointing at the ground, and ran back to his little food shack returning with his best pelt and some fish, tossing the first one behind the zora’s back and placing the chest of food in front of him. There. ‘Make yourself comfortable and tell me all’ while offering some comfort food, it was clear enough, wasn’t it?

Sidon’s only seemed more and more confused, Hylian and zora language in terms of hospitality had to be quite different, until his eyes landed on the basket of fish. That’s when he visibly tensed once more, blushing and almost trying to escape from it for a moment… before allowing himself a tired chuckle and hiding his face behind his large hands.

“You truly are a charmer, my friend, but I’m afraid my heart is taken.”

Oh.

Oh. Link couldn’t explain why he felt way more uncomfortable than the past two times he accidentally flirted with Sidon, because it apparently happened again, but it was definitely worse than usual? Both because he expected Sidon to tell his best friend_ he had a crush on someone _ and because Zora were so weird.

“PFT!”

The annoyed huff he let out was sincere as he raised his hands and crossed his legs sitting in front of him. Okay, with Link not visiting Sidon for five years there were probably a lot of things they missed out about each other, still…

“The voltfins on their own are considered a great courting gift in our culture-” At least he seemed to know by this point how blind Link was to their culture, especially when it came to romantic ways “- but one of this alone would get you any of the ladies in the domain.”

Link blinked looking at the Stealthfin trout the prince was now holding from the tail like it personally offended him. That little thing? He tossed so many in Tera’s face to get his gear upgraded… oh, right, they mostly appeared inside the Lost Forest so they were probably considered… an odd rarity outside?

Not to mention most Zora fished while swimming and from his experience that kind of trout could only be seen from above and only when really close, even the few ones he got in Mekar Lake. Oh, he could share with Sidon how to get them if he seemed serious about his crush. Maybe.

“Goodness, I think I only ever saw them in romantic books?” At least Sidon sounded amused “I.... it would be highly inappropriate for me to take anything from this basket but I appreciate your offer. I always wondered what one would taste like but-”

With a growl and clearly rolling his eyes Link grabbed the fish, took a big bite cutting the head off (The best part in his opinion, he loved the crunch) and offered the gross, remaining half back to Sidon. There, it was now a bloody, ugly bit of meat with the filets still there so he could taste it. It wasn’t a nice gift if it was a morsel covered in spit and blood, right?

“No. No. That’s exactly how you-” The prince’s voice was once more barely a choked whisper and his amusement was mixed with embarrassment until he seemed to calm down and reached for Link’s leftover “I do accept it as a friendship token, will it be alright for you?”

Link shrugged, slapping a couple of Chillfin trouts in his mouth and waiting for Sidon to get comfortable once more. At least this little exchange helped with the general mood a bit. To think he only collected those trouts (And silent princesses. And Blue Nightshades. And Silent shrooms.) only because he truly needed all the good food that’d allow him to be as sneaky as possible. Not that it seemed to have a lot of effects in that form, still… Oh, who cared?

‘_ E x p l a i n _’

He repeated, slowly, to which Sidon replied with a sigh. He really didn’t want to share, mh? As much as every fiber of his being told Link it was a terrible idea he slowly, letter by letter, spelled out his next sentence.

‘_ Y o u t e l l m e, I t e l l y o u. O n e. _’

A truth for a truth, he could still lie if necessary, but he wanted to know what was hurting his friend and what he could do to help.

“I see…” He didn’t like the small glint in the prince’s eyes but the question that immediately followed was probably the lamest he could imagine “Do you have a name?”

Just… that? Link blinked, his hand automatically raising to reply… and then stopping midair after the first L and midway to a I. There was a short moment of pure panic as he channeled all his ancestors, all the valiant ‘Links’ who fought before him, begging them to suggest a valid Zora name starting with L.

_ Laruta _, said a voice in the back of his head speaking of never ending sea and exploration, but he already moved his hand in position for the I with the thumb placed under the other fingers, considering how fluent the prince was with sign language he was going to notice any hesitation, especially now that he seemed completely focused on his movements.

_ Lulu. _ That was another voice in his head, something even more distant and filled with sadness… but Link knew not to dwell on the ghostly feelings of his past reincarnations and he didn’t hesitate to spell the whole name out.

Great, now he would get known as Lulu, the monster slayer. No better names, uh?

“Lulu… We have a small pond named Lulu that's right under Ploymus mountain, it’s said it was named after a zora singer from a different world. That’s… a unique one, for sure.”

Before he could proceed with further ramblings Link signed ‘explain’ once more and the prince nodded, spending a moment in silence trying to find the right words to explain himself.

“My best friend is missing.”

It felt like a cold shower, as far as he knew Sidon regarded him as his best friend and-

“It’s been a long time since his last visit but I knew he was probably just too busy with his duties.”

Oh no....

“And what are five years for a Zora anyway. I was waiting for things to calm down and him to come see me in the domain, there was so much I wanted to show him.”

Oh no, please no…

“Instead the first letter I receive from the castle in months informs me he disappeared.”

Sweet Hylia please strike him with lightning right now.

“I’ve been traveling around Hyrule whenever someone reported a sighting but so far I’ve been unsuccessful in locating him. I…”

Link felt his mouth absolutely dry once more, so _ he _was the asshole who was making Sidon miserable. He wanted to disappear.

“I just… he must be in danger. He’s such an honorable person, he would never leave without a word-” Link bit his lips hard, oh how wrong was his silly zora boy “- and if he is in need, I should be able to find him and assist. He’s the hero of Hyrule, for fuck’s sake, he deserves it!”

He felt less than a red bokoblin right now, shame and guilt washing all over him once again. The fact that Sidon was getting more and more agitated with each sentence, like someone who bottled up too many things and was finally letting them flow loose… it only told Link what a horrible person he was.

Shit, he didn’t even know Sidon was able to say fuck.

“Yet Zelda decided to stop searching for him-” wait, really? “-and I can’t even… What if he’s in pain right now? What if he’s begging for help? We’re just here sitting on our fins and the only Hylians who are willingly to help are the Sheikah and only because both me and lady Paya-”

Sidon’s voice cracked at that and the giant shark man shook his head, there was clearly something he wanted to say but couldn’t and…. Link wasn’t really in the mood of trying to get more information right now. Dear lady, he wasn’t just less than a bokoblin, he was less than a bokoblin poop.

_ ‘W h a t i f h e l e f t’ _

“He would never!” Sidon’s sudden shout took him by absolute surprise, it truly felt like he was finally getting his feelings out after a long time but… “You clearly never met him. He’s strong, honorable, honest, he would never leave without letting Zelda know. Or without… if that was true then he left without even leaving me a note. Or her. I apologize for sounding selfish but I really _ really _ hope I mean more to him than… _ that’s the fish prince who helped me once _. If he left… if he truly wanted to leave us behind… it would break my heart.”

Link’s hands raised for a second, he almost went to sign ‘I care’, yet he slowly lowered them on his lap once again. He… he needed to fix this. A note, a letter, he needed to find a way to give one to Sidon to give him closure or something. He just needed to control his reactions for now.

“I just… one last time. What wouldn’t I give to see him one last time?”

Ok, no. Zora etiquette could go to hell for all he cared, Link bolted up tossing his arms around the prince’s neck in a goofy hug. He could sense him tense under his touch but even when Sidon tried to pull back the eel just kept his grip strong around his frame.

“This is… this is…” Inappropriate, yes, he knew and didn’t care. A soft laugh mixed with sobs came from the other and he raised his hand to pet his head… just to realize he was also covering the prince with that slime his body liked to cover itself with. Great, what a wonderful way to comfort someone, he really needed to learn how to control that.

Still, despite the awkwardness, despite the disgusting film between them, Sidon seemed to relax after a while and even returned the hug, even if he was clearly overly careful about where and how much he touched.

“You truly are an hylian raised wonder, my friend.”

He didn’t care if it was so evident, Link still cuddled his best friend, his_ little brother _, letting the fact he was hurting him so much sink properly.

“I…”

The second time the prince tried to put distance between them Link let him, if he wasn’t in such a terrible mood he would have laughed at how gross he looked now. Sidon offered him a weak smile, slowly taking the pelt off his back and getting on his feet once more.

“I apologize for my outburst and I thank you for your support, Lulu. I… I think it’s time for me to leave now.”

He wasn’t going to stop him now, not when he had so much to think about, yet Link still got up once more to toss the pelt back on Sidon’s shoulders even if considering their size difference it was no easy feat without climbing on him.

“Uh, I don’t-”

_ ‘F r i e n d t o k e n’ _

“Oh…”

The prince’s features softened and he graced Link with one of the softest smile the knight had ever seen. Sidon stepped back, saying friend and clearly drawing the corrispective word in sign language, looking satisfied only when Link copied the movement.

“Thank you. For… all of this. See you soon, Lulu.” 

It wasn’t until Sidon was already distant that Link allowed himself to fall in the river below. His tangle of lies was too thick to get out of it at this point and he had a dear friend in pain and risking his neck traveling across Hyrule all because of him.

Were others also searching? How many people did he actually hurt just because he needed his life and freedom back? He found himself scratching his face behind the mask, claws digging even under the flesh in search of something, anything to take it off and only finding muscles and scales.

Even if it meant returning to that horribly boring life he lead in the castle… he needed to find a way to get rid of the Zora mask and go home.


	5. I heard you like apples

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for all your support, I'm having a lot of fun writing this! And yes, it's absolutely self indulgent but... I'm still having fun.

Link wasn’t the kind of person who gives up easily and he knew even his pre-calamity incarnation wasn’t much different: if there’s a problem there must be a solution somewhere and that must apply to the zora mask as well.

He spent a whole week back on the Plateau searching for hints of any sort, after all he never really took his time to explore it once he got his paraglider and if the chest with the mask was in the River of the Dead perhaps he could find something else between the ruins. All he got was three more koroks in the snow covered area, Hetsu was probably still playing hide and seek with them, and countless bruises on his knees and hands.

At least he now knew for sure the zora had some kind of cold resistance, not once he needed to take his doublet out of the slate, and the Old King’s cabin proved its utility once more: even with the missing door, even if the bed was still a broken mess, it still felt like home. More than his fancy palace room did.

With no success on that area he started exploring the zora Domain in search of clues, carefully avoiding others in the process but still covering more terrain than he ever during his journey.

Thinking about it, despite all the traveling even there he had been so tied to his duties, his need to help everyone, he didn’t really… enjoy himself. Not as much as he started doing since he… well, escaped.

It didn’t matter, Sidon was hurt and others were probably worried sick about him as well, he needed to go back in one way or another. He just wished he knew how.

Defeated he left the humid domain to travel around Hyrule, sneaking in all stables looking for any magazine about masks. Nothing. Well, not really nothing, he found one mentioning a goron mask but not only it wasn’t going to help with his issue, it also seemed to be all the way up in Death Mountain, he was going to turn into a roasted eel before even seeing the lava.

Too bad the only library he knew about was now in the rebuilt Hyrule Castle, if some book about ancient relics of the past still existed Zelda probably owned it.

Thinking about her, he wasn’t really surprised she interrupted any search for his persona, she was easily the closest person Link had and if someone had to notice how much he struggled in his old life that was her. Maybe she (rightfully) assumed he just… escaped.

Now, he could attempt sneaking in the library, by night only Zelda wandered inside it and no one knew about the secret shrine hidden under it… but while Link was incredibly skilled at facing the world and its challenges he was also one of the lamest archivists known to hyliankind.

He needed time to find anything, working in the dark was going to make things hellish and… honestly? He didn’t even know where to start. Adventuring and following leads was drastically different than… reading and archiving stuff. Even his paperwork was mostly reading and signing stuff, not organizing it or searching for more… and he hated sitting in front of books and lists anyway.

For Sidon, he told himself. Sneaking in the library was literally his only option, he could still try to steal all zora or relic related books, one at a time, and bring the back, right? Who was going to notice a little zora taking a book or two once in a while?

Everyone, apparently. 

Turns out the secret library passage was no longer that secret, as soon as he teleported to Saas Ko’sah’s shrine he heard multiple guards yelling about suspicious lights coming from it and he barely managed to sneak back in the small alcove and teleport away before being cornered by his old men.

Fuck.

He couldn’t really go there without getting everyone’s attention, mh? The shrine wasn’t an option, swimming in was also a bad idea considering he used the Zora armor to get inside and avoid guardians during his quests… and proceeded to put guards near the small river falls that allowed access.

Flying? Nah, unless he wanted to deal with a barrage of arrows. Walking in? Oh, sure, they were just going to let a total stranger in.

After many hours spent swimming around the castle, trying to figure out an access path, Link finally accepted he fixed the place’s defenses way too well. Going in unnoticed wasn’t probably possible, not with Zelda placing guards there as well.

The eel kept running in circles for almost another month, looking for clues, even stopping Traysi on the road and asking her with the most basic signs if she ever heard of masks able to turn you into other species. Nope.

Defeated he walked back to his place, Sidon was still out there trying to find him and Link had no idea of how to fix it. 

It was time to give up and send him a proper letter, he just needed to figure out _ how. _

\- - -

Turns out getting covered in disgusting goo whenever his system decided he was nervous enough didn’t only make fighting unnecessarily harder (not that he disliked the extra challenge) and hugging random fish bros an awkwardly slimy experience, it also made writing a basic letter a challenge on its own.

Link let out a distressed groan as the paper he was trying to use (All… ‘borrowed’, like the ink and pen) stuck to his skin once more: he already tossed most of his attempts away as the pen slipped away between his fingers or droplets of liquid fell on it, no matter how hard he tried he seemed unable to keep one of his to be letters stain free. And he had to write five.

One for Zelda, one for Sidon, and three for those he considered the new champions of their respective races. He couldn’t make things too unfair, could he? After all Yunobo, Teba and Riju also risked their lives to help him save hyrule.

Honestly, if he could get one done he’d be happy with that already.

Lunch turned to look at her hylian partner as he started shrieking after accidentally spilling (another) bottle of ink on the grass, those stupid fingers couldn’t even hold stuff properly right now. He needed to dry up, he needed… he needed…

“Oh...”

He turned to look at his horse-wife, as he jokingly called her, with the tail slowly wagging behind his head as an idea formed in his mind.

He needed Gerudo Town.

\- - -

Traveling to the desert, despite being on horseback for most of the path, had been as unpleasant as expected. He had to avoid the main roads, any traveling merchant or stable owner would have recognized the hero’s noble steed in a heartbeat, meaning he needed to climb his way to the top of the highlands alone before sliding in.

At least his idea was right, his skin started to dry up and crack as soon as the warm air started blowing in his direction, and that was enough to give him the stability he needed to write down five simple letters of goodbye for his friends.

Why didn’t he turn back as soon as he was done?

He needed hennè.

Lunch was easy to recognize but if he could at least color her mane and tail a good crimson red he could at least ride her near hylian settlements. And he knew a hylian vai who colored her hair who lived in Kara Kara Bazaar. Vilia.

There were other colors, sure, Link could remember being offered green, purple and… maybe even a ridiculously bright blue, but those were clearly artificial ones, a brown horse with red mane and spots was definitely more… normal.

He just needed to… get there.

It was almost surreal when one of the ‘Travelers’, a Yiga in disguise he met many times before, stopped him with a ‘careful there, buddy’ before offering him a drink, it was even weirder actually sitting down with this man as he tried to convince him to desist, traveling in that area wasn’t a zora thing.

Link thanked him, still pretending to barely know anything of sign language, but still had to proceed. Ah… a water container made with a goat’s skin, uh? He needed to make himself a waterskin as well, at least to deal with eventual future trips in warmer areas.

As soon as he left the rocky terrain and his feet sunk in the sand true hell started. Despite moving at night dehydration made his knees weak and despite how dry everything was he could still feel sand slipping basically everywhere and firmly attaching itself between his joints.

By the time he reached the oasis his head was spinning, his mouth felt as dry as a molduga’s skin and his gills were basically clasped shut in what was his body’s attempt to keep any humidity in. Did he even want to know what a longer trip, especially by day, would have been like? The cold of the desert was probably what saved him, Link knew how amphibians easily died when they got too dry.

Trying not to think about his trip to go back he let himself fall in the small pool of water in the middle of the settlement and closed his eyes. Vilia could wait.

\- - -

Turns out the woman was still as lovely as he remembered. It wasn’t a matter of beauty, he had seen her face only once and he could remember himself thinking how he really didn’t like beards, but her heart… that was splendid.

As soon as he managed to climb his way up to the inn’s roof she immediately dragged him down, inside and in a colder room before scolding him like a baby for risking to end up like dry fish, proceeded to wrap him in wet towels and as soon as she found out the reason he was there… that angel didn’t hesitate a second before offering to teach him.

It was with silent admiration that Link studied her movements as, after inviting Emri for a free beauty session, she proceeded to go step by step covering the whole process. And then? When all was done and all needed to be cleaned up? She only asked for a few rupees for the henne and told him to show her the horse someday.

A queen, truly.

He still sneaked in her room that night to leave five silver rupees by the door.

\- - -

Lunch’s mane was done, the letters were ready, he just needed to figure out how to deliver his precious treasure. He returned to his small house carrying a bag filled with sunset butterfly parts and another with dragon scales, Sneaky elixirs needed to be prepared anyway and they had to be as strong as possible considering how his body seemed to dull the effects anyway.

He then could… maybe… paraglide to Sidon’s royal chambers and drop the letter inside? Yunobo was going to be a pain to reach, Riju was no different, Ritos had flying guards everywhere and Zelda was in a perfectly guarded castle… Sidon’s quarters had instead large unguarded windows if what he remembered was correct. 

The others were probably going to be rightfully pissed at him for picking a favorite but, really, it was his only option. Now he just-

“My friend, you’re back!”

WHAT IN THE NAME OF HYLIA-

He almost slipped back in the river at that greeting, what was the prince doing by his dead fireplace? It was late, monster activity was high around that time of the day, why was he… waiting for him?

Link’s head fin straightened as he quickly approached the other after tossing his items on the ground. Did something happen in the domain? Sidon’s expression wasn’t promising anything good.

_ ‘Is everything okay?’ _

His hands moved before he could stop himself but fortunately enough it wasn’t a sentence elaborate enough to give away how fluent he actually was in sign language. And, honestly, if Sidon had even more worries he wanted to know at this point.

“I see you’ve been making progress.”

_ ‘Me. Learn. Little.’ _ A pause _ ‘Explain’ _

The red zora hesitate for a long moment, something Link couldn’t quite understand considering Sidon clearly reached his spot to talk, before finally speaking.

“You travel a lot, don’t you?”

The eel slowly nodded, he certainly did but how was that relevant?

“Would you… could you work for me?

Now that was an unusual request. Link certainly didn’t mind helping him of all people, the prince had been nothing but a great person around both Link and Lulu, but… he had a literal army at his service, what could do a single weird zora more than his men?

“I… uh… had a talk with the King.”

His dad? Oh, right, he never told his zora self he was a prince among his people, did he?

“He says there must be a reason if the hero disappeared and asked me to… interrupt the search as well. It’s been months and we still have no lead after all. Still… if traveling you heard anything about it, could you please inform me? I don’t know what you’d consider a proper reward but I’d give anything for news about him!”

Oh. Oh that could be just what he needed, he just had to pretend he met himself and got the letters during his travels! A risky move, perhaps but-

“I wanted to continue searching on my own, if necessary, but the King only agreed to let me check one last place before…” He waved his hand midair “My last chance to find any clue will be a visit to his other homeplace, a small hylian settlement named Hateno. I’m… leaving soon. After that I will have to stay in the domain.”

The eel didn’t reply for a long moment, simply staring at the prince with wide eyes.

Hateno. Sidon had never been to Link’s house before and he was about to travel there to search for clues? That was… perfect! He could help with the search and accidentally discover letters in the buildings, he created himself a secret stash under the floor not even Bolson knew about it!

It was going to be the perfect way to deliver his goodbye messages!

_ ‘W i t h you I c o m e’ _

The prince blinked.

“You… you want to come to Hateno as well?”

‘_ Yes’ _

“Oh… oh no, two not related zora traveling together would be indecent, what would people think?”

Of course it was another indecent thing to suggest. Link rolled his eyes, while he knew zoras were spiritual people with a lot of self imposed rules it was getting ridiculous. No touch, no sharing certain kinds of fishes, no fins and now not traveling in two? 

Was there anything the Zora didn’t consider indecent?

Come on, it wasn’t like Sidon was a pure maiden, it was just… two guys traveling together to a relatively nearby city. Okay, a reason to insist… In theory, he had no real reason to go so it had to be something not related to the champion of Hyrule and- of course!

_ ‘N e e d n e w s a d d l e’ _

“You have a... horse?”

FUCK. Stupid brain not catching up with his hands, spelling letter by letter wasn’t even the fastest thing to do. Wait, what was that sudden hesitation in the other’s voice? Link tilted his head studying how the prince was now fidgeting and how tense his muscles were.

Oh well, he mentioned a horse and he was rolling with him because the prince’s reaction was suspicious at best.

_ ‘Good h o r s e.’ _

“Oh, yes, I don’t doubt that, it’s just… I haven’t seen horses in a long time. Uh… you know, you two should stay, I will find you a saddle. My treat. You- or your noble steed… it’s not necessary to come, truly.”

That wasn’t an embarrassed reaction, Sidon’s scales were turning once more in that specific position that made him look almost pinkish instead of a bright red, and he knew that meant either shock or fear.

Link couldn’t contain his choked laugh as he raised his hands once more. It couldn’t be…

_ ‘You f e a r h o r s e?’ _

The way his scales turned again, now giving him the familiar blue hue, was enough as a reply for Link. Oh, that was just precious.

“I… shouldn’t, the one who owns my heart is enamoured with those creatures, but I find them so… unnatural looking.”

That information definitely took Link by surprise, he thought he was basically the only zora owning one. Well, he wasn’t going to push for information on Sidon’s crush but having a fellow horse lover in the domain… Link almost hoped to learn more, that could make for another fine friend.

“They’re half lynel!”

Aaaand that’s where Link lost it. Completely. The absolutely scandalized note in Sidon’s voice, like owning a horse could be the equivalent of bedding one, the clear way he still tensed up just by talking about them- his best friend was afraid of horses!

Well, in Lunch’s case he could understand, still…

“Ah- I- excuse me?”

Sidon’s scandalized tone as he watched the eel roll on the grass laughing only made him laugh even harder. Sweet Hylia, that was hilarious! A giant, gentle shark afraid of the most beautiful animals of Hyrule.

Hands still shaking, he rolled over his back to sign despite lacking the self control to interrupt his chuckles and trying to ignore his more than shaky hands.

_ ‘I c o m e. H e l p you get y o u r s w e e t h e a r t s a d d l e’ _

“Not my sweetheart!” Link could hear the ‘yet’ left unsaid, how adorable “I… uh… I appreciate your offer but I don’t think it’d be appropriate for me to accept. If anyone saw us-”

_ ‘N o o n e s e e’ _

“I am positive two zoras traveling together, one of them being a big, red one, will attract some eyes.”

The champion finally managed to stop his chain of hysterical giggles and managed to shake his head, the tail unpleasantly scratching against the floor. Oh, if he didn’t want to be seen he wasn’t going to be seen, not only he still had a full sheikah set in his slate (And at least the headpiece would still work) but…

_ ‘N o s e e. L o o k.’ _ he signed once more getting up and moving toward his pot. In less than a minute there was already a fire running in front of Sidon’s eyes. With the smuggest grin Link proceeded to toss some water in the pot, a handful of butterfly wings and then, slowly, reaching for the final bag.

Oh, he had shown Sidon one of those before, he knew the zora would recognize them. And if he had been so impressed about the champions having a single scale of Farosh…

He huffed, amused, taking out one of the scales of Naydra and offering it to the other.

The prince’s jaw dropped as his gaze kept wandering between the dragon’s piece and Link’s face. Okay, that was probably a bit too much but it was worth it and, hey, ‘Link’ wasn’t necessarily the only person able to obtain those, right? He found many in chests during his journey.

“How?”

No reply from Link, he only allowed Sidon to study the scale for a moment before gently going for his silver bracelets once more and pulling his hands toward the already boiling pot. The big shark seemed to take his time to process what was happening and instantly pulled back with a loud ‘no’.

“This is… you can’t cook this!”

Link carelessly opened his bag with one of his feet to show all the other scales waiting to be consumed. It was so funny how many considered the scales such a treasure when in reality all of them didn’t cost him more than a single wooden arrow each.

Sidon’s sharp breath and the way he clinged to the scale was… adorable, it reminded Link of a child who just put his hands on a big, new treasure. He still applied pressure on specific points of his wrists to force his muscles to drop the scale in the pot. 

The prince’s scandalized look as the dragon part disappeared in the water was so worth it. 

Link didn’t hesitate stirring the ingredients together, in a matter of minutes the magic of the scale already turned the whole liquid in a perfect, blue potion. He had always been fascinated by how quickly mixing specific things with monster parts almost immediately caused the reaction that turned all into elixirs, sadly he never truly had time to focus on learning what was behind it.

_ ‘N o s e e’ _

He slowly spelled out before bottling the content of the pot in one of the small glass containers he learnt to keep around.

“I… you use hylian elixirs, then? And for them to have any effect you need to… use… those? It’s such a waste-”

_ ‘L o t s’ _

“I can see you have a lot of those, I just don’t understand how. It… I… I only held one, once, long ago. It’s such a rare find yet you have a whole bag full of them, I-”

Link interrupted his talk by placing another scale between his hands, Farosh’s, and the look of pure marvel on Sidon’s face let him know it had been the right choice. Zoras were way too sensible to electricity to actually touch anything infused with its power, he was probably the only weird exception thanks to Urbosa, yet the scale’s aura was harmless, gently cracking under a person’s skin.

Dinrall’s scales were warm to the touch, Naydra’s were always surrounded by a light cold breeze but Farosh’s were unique. Or perhaps he felt so due to his alleged affinity to the deity the dragon was associated with, whoever wielded the Master sword was said to have something to do with it.

Farosh’s power felt like gentle static electricity, it made your skin crawl in a pleasant way and when his body was covered in thin hair Link could feel them rise near it. 

Perhaps it wasn’t the most unique thing in the world, yet he could imagine how it could feel for a zora who never touched anything like that before.

The prince’s expression, full of wonder and awe, made his heart feel warm and he couldn’t help himself from choosing the next words. Big brother feelings? Probably, yes, it made sense.

_ ‘You c a n k e e p it.’ _

“Oh… oh no no no… this would be the equivalent of a wedding proposal in my culture, you can’t just give rare fishes or hunting treasures like this.”

_ ‘S a y you f o u n d it.’ _

“I can’t possibly lie!”

Right, it was Sidon they were talking about. How could he convince him to take the scale without making it sound like a weird proposal. The solution was simple.

_ ‘T r a d e’ _

“For what? Its value is-”

He pinched one of the tiny golden ropes that were part of the prince’s everyday outfit, finding it probably the less valuable thing Sidon had on him at the moment.

“but this isn’t even remotely worth-”

‘_ Shiny! _’

He knew the word was somewhere on the book Sidon gave him and he just needed to interrupt the shark before he started blabbering again. Getting dragon parts was so easy, anything more would have been a steal.

“You like shiny things…”

Sidon didn’t hesitate to take off his whole shoulder piece pushing it between Link’s hands, the knight felt… really bad realizing the whole thing was a single piece that couldn’t come apart easily. Oops?

“I’m surprised you’d ask for this considering you’ve been adamant in your refusal for jewelry but… if it’s shiny things in general you’d like to collect perhaps we could work on a proper… my friend, listen! I know you haven’t accepted to look for the champion yet but I also have a new proposal. Would you…”

Link frowned, Sidon’s claws were almost scratching the scale and his whole head fin was now standing straight behind him and . What did he even wanted to ask to be so nervous about it?

“You’re currently the only person I can ask this…”

He saw him take a deep breath trying to gather the courage to speak.

“Mybelovedloveshorses.” Oh “Would you help me overcome my fear of them?” That was it? Oh, Sidon, you adorable fish. Link chuckled slapping his hand a couple of times against the other, covered shoulder of the prince.

Of course he was going to help, he didn’t even needed to be paid… he just needed to find a tamer horse than Lunch to have around him: both because the zora was probably going to recognize her and because a war steed wasn’t probably the best to start with.

Not to mention Lunch loved to bite, not exactly the best choice.

“Thank you, my friend! I’m certain we will figure out a proper way of compensation…”

‘C a r r o t s and a p p l e s f o r h o r s e.”

“Are you sure that’d be enough?”

He nodded, still sensing the other’s tension. That made sense, thought,if the other was afraid of horses it wasn’t probably easy asking for… this.

“Mh-mh”

Link nodded before gathering his bags once again, getting ready 

‘W h e n H a t e n o?’

“When… oh, when I leave for the city? I will travel there in two weeks but, really, even if we’re both men… I have my reasons to say others wouldn’t look at me traveling alone with you too kindly.”

Because he was a prince? He couldn’t see the problem, honestly, and he needed to deliver his letters anyway so…

‘S e e you i n t w o’

He winked in the prince’s direction before diving back in the river.

\- - -

Turns out he was incredibly picky with horses.

He had to choose a gentle one and Link knew that would translate into an animal with less speed and strength than Lunch and… honestly? For a horse he planned to release after allowing Sidon to get a bit more comfortable with them he didn’t care that much. 

What he cared about was the color pattern.

Blue horses? No thanks, one of them kicked him between his legs the very first time he tried to catch one and Link avoided them since then. 

Red maned ones? Lunch had a red mane, for now, Link didn’t want to spend far too long staring at a naturally red fur, he knew himself well enough he’d slowly become paranoid over unnatural his mare still looked. 

Black ones? Too edgy and the spotted ones honestly reminded him of a cow, not to mention his skin was bright and yellow… no hunter would ever pick a mount that’d basically scream ‘Look, together we’re a giant salamander with no mimetic potential!’.

Talking about cows- to be honest, most of the spotted ones felt like cattle. He wanted to introduce his best friend to a proper horse, not that! Which was too bad, if only he could ever find a single non spotted horse with that lovely honey, almost pinkish, tint he’d pick it in a heartbeat.

That one was a big no, another one that seemed decent enough had a slight limp and it was probably leaving it in peace, one was cute but definitely too wild for a zora already afraid of horses, OH THAT ONE WAS PERFECT… but basically identical to his mare, at least in appearance. Fuck.

Link definitely had a problem. 

It took him a week to find the one. 

The zora was starting to wonder if he’d ever find a horse that _ she _ appeared in front of him. Her mane was beautiful and black, her fur of the most beautiful brown shade, her hooves black and below the knee she had the most adorable white socks.

For a moment he could almost hear the ghost of his old self screaming and his blue eyes widened in realization: that horse was identical to the one he had before… everything.

_ Chestnut. _

Gods, his old self also had the worst naming skills... but, really what could anyone expect from someone who dyed most of his clothes brown, pre and post calamity? He even vaguely remember a blonde girl -his sister, maybe?- complaining about his lack of personality.

Well… lack of originality or not that was the horse he wanted.

\- - -

Chestnut was going to be perfect for Sidon: unlike Lunch she was calm, caring and loved both cuddles and snacks. 

He even actually stopped by a proper stable, the Riverside one, to register her, the owner was absolutely speechless but didn’t protest when Link shoved a purse full of money under his nose. He had more rupees than any hylian could use anyway and if it could go to help horses around Hyrule he was more than happy to put them to good use.

The zora took his time to take care of her, while Lunch was absolutely wild and hated most attentions the new horse allowed him to braid her mane, didn’t protest when Link saddled her and seemed to love when he brushed her.

In the end he left after exchanging some rare foods with Gotter for horse grooming tools.

Now he could ride his wildest mare whenever he wanted to travel alone and this graceful angel whenever he needed to approach hylian settlements. He didn’t even need to worry about winter being an issue for his new steed considering he found her north of Rito Village, already in the middle of the snow.

Things were looking bright.

\- - -

As he told Sidon, no one was going to see him… and that included the prince himself. 

Mostly.

When the zora left the Domain Link barely greeted him before jumping in the water… only to teleport himself to a nearby shrine. many times during Sidon’s trip he occasionally popped his head out or allowed the prince to spot him waiting in the distance, enjoying how the other seemed absolutely baffled by how fast he was and how easily he climbed around.

He even allowed Sidon to pass him more than once, pretending to have more interest in fishing or collecting fruits than following the path.

Hey, if they weren’t strictly traveling together it didn’t really count as something indecent anyway, was it? He only had to be careful in not showing his slate in any way and things were going to be absolutely perfect.

His last jump was to Hateno’s tower, there he carefully moved to Midla woods where he left both his horses (or, as he joked to himself, his moms), gave his slate to Lunch and let her know it was time to run ‘home’ with a specific click of his tongue. After that Link simply took the main road near Camphor Pond to greet Sidon on the top of his docile steed trying to offer him his best ‘I’ve been waiting you forever’ look.

The confusion on his face was priceless, the look of pure horror as soon as he noticed the horse even better. Oh, too bad he had never been able to take Lunch to the Domain before.

_ ‘T o l d y o u’ _

“How… you were-” he turned to look back for a second then pointed at the horse, still keeping distance from it “-and you didn’t have that with you!”

_ ‘G o o d o n e” _ He chuckled, telling Sidon to follow with a simple gesture of his hand. Noticing his hesitation, which was hilarious considering his size compared to the horse and his owner, he raised his arms once more. Spelling letter by letter was frustrating but for once he took his time to spell out a more or less complete sentence using proper words only wen he knew for sure he had a chance to learn them.

_ ‘She i s g o o d. I a m t o h e l p. T r u s t me.Walk a t o u r s i d e.’ _

Still hesitation, uh? Link’s grin softened as he jumped off Chestnut, having a bit of fun at Sidon’s expense was nice but he didn’t really want to traumatize him. One hand closed around the creature’s bridle to show he was in complete control of it, let’s ignore how he learnt the hard way the hinder legs were the true dangerous part of a horse, and the other around the prince’s silver armlet as he brought his hand against Chestnut’s fur.

Link saw him tense and just forced him to stay like that for a while until at least Sidon didn’t seem ready to run away.

_ ‘W e g o. You k e e p h a n d. Learn. F o r s w e e t h e a r t’ _

That… that last bit seemed to work in giving Sidon the determination he needed. He was clearly still afraid but he also seemed to find the determination to walk near the ‘half lynel’ and keep his hand in position. 

Aw, was so cute, whoever Sidon was in love with had to be mean a lot to him if they gave the zora enough motivation to overcome his fears. Or at least attempt to.

They covered the remaining bit of the road in silence, Link proceeding almost with curiosity when he realized the whole place felt more… alive than before. People were cheering, the kids seemed more agitated than usual and- oh.

There were.. they were organizing a fair!

An excited squeal managed to escape his lips as he sped up, Link couldn’t even recall the last time he had been allowed to go and enjoy one… probably because it was during his past life.

He couldn’t quite remember his past life but as he passed a couple of stands he knew he had been to a few… but he had always been on duty. He wasn’t even completely sure about that but it was one of those gut feelings- he knew it was the truth.

His… first fair in forever. Even when he attended celebrations of sort with Zelda they still had their role to adhere to and Link as mostly around for supervision, not to have fun. He turned to offer an extremely confused shark man another delighted squeal before rushing over to check on the people who were busy getting ready. 

Turns out in the past few years people living in the village planted more apple trees around town, especially under Purah’s laboratory, and the city was now specialized not only in the cultivation of rice but also in apple related products.

Link felt almost sorry for basically dragging Sidon along as he checked the people he knew pretending he was just a curious zora. So… Prima got married, uh? And not with Manny. That was good. Bolson left to find his true love and apparently moved to Lurelin… and that was all? 

It was almost a relief realizing the town had stayed the same.

He was about to proceed further when Nebb, now a teen, stopped both zora to inform them the roads of the village were currently closed to horses and it was better to leave it outside the village.

“There is a house that’s basically abandoned right behind the hill, the owner moved to the castle five years ago, you could use the stable for a night. There’s also a little pond you can probably sleep in tonight.”.

Ah… he was sending them to his house. Talk about coincidences.

“The owner moved away… five years ago? Pardon me, young girl-” Both Link and Nebb turned to look at Sidon, wondering how he decided a bearded, male dressing teenager was a lady “- would that be Master Link’s old place?”

“Yeah, that’s the one. You know him?”

“Yes! Yes I do! And that’s exactly where I wanted to go in the first place, do you know if it’d be possible to be granted access to the building?”

“You should probably talk with the mayor of the town but… this isn’t probably the best moment. You know, kinda busy…”

The red Zora seemed ready to object and Link tapped his elbow as gently as possible to get his attention. They could find Reede in the morning if needed, Sidon needed to relax. In a certain sense it was a good thing the prince had never been to Hateno before or he would have probably been ready to drag Link to his home as soon as they passed the main gate.

_ ‘W e w a i t.” _

“But-”

Knowing his hands weren’t fast enough to interrupt the other if he had to spell out letter by letter Link did the only thing he knew he could do: he slapped his hand on the other’s mouth to keep it shut. Hey, it worked with Zelda, ok?

There was that moment of pure panic and embarrassment on the prince’s side but the eel didn’t step back, still pressing his palm against the other’s lips.

_ ‘W e w a i t’ _

At the slight nod he got as reply he finally pulled back, strings of disgusting slime falling to the floor. Ah, wonderful, he basically splattered the prince’s face with it- well, he couldn’t really take it back, right? And Sidon seemed more mortified than anything else. 

“Ew, buddy, that’s disgusting. Are all zora doing that?”

He grinned widely at the hylian, shrugging.

_ ‘M y s p e c i a l t y. I think.’ _

“I… confirm that.” oh, great, Sidon seemed to be back from his more than shocked state “And… I suppose you’re both right, I’d hate to impose myself too much. I will just wait until tomorrow. Good luck with your… festivity, ma’am.”

“Good luck to you as well, fish boy, make sure you don’t get lost and listen to your little friend there.”

And with that they were both in their way to Link’s house.

\- - -

“Can you believe it? He has a pond right behind his home and it’s perfectly my size!”

Sidon replaced his worry and eagerness with childish wonder and excitement as soon as he set foot in his garden… and Link definitely preferred it this way. He finished to secure Chestnut in his old, open stable while the other zora bounced around, exploring the place like he had never seen a hylian building before.

“And look! This truly is Link’s house.”

He rolled his eyes, amused by the enthusiasm the other had over a simple sign. To think Link wasn’t even sure he wanted it at first… a bit too showy for his tastes but Bolson insisted too much.

“I bet he parked his horse where you put yours!”

Park- He chuckled, that was what one did with carriages and stuff, not _ horses _.

“And look! The door is so small! It’s barely my size- was he always so short?”

Link snorted, repressing a laugh. Excuse him? Short? That door was perfectly hylian sized, thank you, and even if his normal self wasn’t exactly a tall hylian he was still... more or less in the norm.

“Uh… I meant no offense, of course-”

Aaand now he just implied he considered him short as well. Not that he could blame him for that, he was definitely shorter than Dunma or Gaddison and they were women.

“In a certain way I like small people? I mean… the one I like is… quite small.”

And that was a new information, good to know.

“I apologize if I mention that so much, I just… haven’t really told anyone yet, not even my father, and it feels… nice to talk about it? A little, at least?”

Link managed to emit a ‘aaaw’, even if his voice cracked badly at the end and he felt like couching. He shrugged to let the other know he didn’t mind, quite the contrary, it was… nice to know he could still be a bit like a brother for his favorite fish person in Hyrule.

“I… can’t wait to see what’s inside his home.”

Oh, sudden switch of topic? Okay. The other probably wanted to drop the ‘the person I like’ subject and Link couldn’t completely blame him. Not to mention he could hear some music coming from Hateno, a local band was probably playing some traditional songs and he wanted to go there.

“Mmmh?”

The yellow eel pointed a finger toward the main road and threw a small satchel filled with money on his shoulders. He needed to slip the letters inside the house but he planned to do that in the morning as Sidon was busy with the Mayor. He knew where he hid his spare keys, he only had to climb Ebon mountain, delightfully avoided by most people, and dig for it… no one was going to notice anything.

Oh, he couldn’t wait to see Sidon put an end to his sad search.

“Mmmh?”

He insisted, pointing at the village once more. He… he wanted to go, truly. While he loved his solitude, his life with horses and wild animals, for once he wanted to join simple people celebrating their simple lives. Link just needed to take some extra time for himself once this trip to Hateno was done and things were going to be fine, it wasn’t like he missed being surrounded by too many people anyway.

“Oh… oh no. I can’t possibly… I can smell them cooking vegetables from here.”

How, Link wondered. He almost lost his sense of smell since he turned into a zora, being able to perceive things sharply only while in the water.

“Pfft-”

“I’m sorry, my friend, but I think I will enjoy the pond in the back instead of joining them. I don’t know how you’re not tired after days worth of walking but I need to rest my legs.”

Right. Sidon had been slower than Link had ever been but that wasn’t a surprise for him considering zora legs were proportionally shorter than hylian ones and walking for a long time easily tired them out. 

He laughed, bowing at the prince and hopping toward the city. Zora or not he couldn’t wait to eat a lot.

\- - -

While Link didn’t plan to stop too much trying to socialize with others he wanted to enjoy his evening as he walked by the little stalls and laughing people. 

Two men and a woman he didn’t recognize were playing old songs that were somehow both new and nostalgic to him, Seldon and his daughter Sophie were selling traditional costumes with apples stitched on them, ladies were selling their sweets-

It felt… so nice. 

The first ones who approached him were the kids, they had never seen a zora and had countless questions but sadly his inability to speak seemed to pose a barrier there. At least until a girl named Sabby pointed at one of his numerous scars and asked him how he got it.

“Oooooh…”

A stick and some dirt were all he needed to sketch an Hinox… and that was when he became an instant attraction, at least for the youngest. With a pot lid and a branch in hand he found himself re-enacting most of his battles by the dye shop enchanting the kids with tales of hinoxes, lynels and giant giants of rock.

Even if the adults assumed he was lying he didn’t really care, the children were having fun and that was what truly mattered, right? A young boy even tried to grab his long head tail pretending to be a ‘Boblin’ just to let out a loud ‘ew’ when he found his hands covered in goo.

He even managed to teach them a couple of words in sign language when their parents decided to pick them up because it was getting late.

Turns out he missed most of the fair itself by playing with them but… Link didn’t mind, somehow? He visited the stalls still open purchasing a little wooden horse for himself, he had no idea where he was going to keep it but as soon as he saw it Link knew he was in love, and pastries.

Especially pastries.

He had three apple pies, six jars of apple jam, various packs of cookies and… a small, rice cake.

Now, he knew zora ate rice, it was sold at the Domain’s general store after all, but from what he heard they simply threw it uncooked between their teeth… Link frowned looking at the little pastry he purchased, he didn’t want to push the other to try fruits but, hey, if anything had a chance to be accepted it was probably something that barely had any apple in it to begin with.

He gave a kid a high five and passed a group of dancing people, mostly couples who still wanted to enjoy their time, before taking the road to return to his old home- only to find Sidon waiting standing against Karson’s house. 

The yellow zora triumphantly held up the bags with his purchases, emitting a short and barely audible ‘yey’ but Sidon didn’t return his enthusiasm, more interested in studying the now dying fair.

He didn’t even look at him as he approached, speaking only after a good moment.

“Do you think… my friend…. do you think he likes this kind of things?”

Uh… yeah? To be honest, he only found out how much he liked that kind of things in the past couple of hours but… yes. Somehow his nod wasn’t really appreciated, Sidon inhaled sharply and turned to walk back toward Link’s little cottage.

What was going on now?

“We don’t have anything like that in the Domain.”

… so?

“I couldn’t even offer him…”

Another loud sigh at Sidon decided it was the perfect moment to stop talking, reaching in silence the large pond and ungracefully letting himself fall in it. Link let out an annoyed growl as he placed his bags near the water and sat down by it, he just didn’t understand!

“I… it seems I know less about Hylians than I thought. His place, this village, all speaks of a world I’m not familiar with.”

Was that all? Hell, at times he barely understood other people himself. Still it was nice to know Sidon valued their friendship so much he was afraid not to know enough about him. Wasn’t that a mutual problem, thought? Link had to learn so much about zoras, from how they barely touched each other to how they enhanced their books with powdered pearls to make them waterproof. Cultural shocks of sort had to be expected between people so different.

_ ‘I l e a r n f r o m you. You l e a r n f r o m me.’ _

“I can’t possibly bother you so much-”

_ ‘We start w i t h food.’ _

The prince almost jumped back when the little rice cake was placed under his nose and Link had to bite his lips not to laugh in his face. He knew Sidon could easily fight an hinox by himself yet he was looking at the offending pastry like it could bite him.

_ ‘W a s t o l d h e’ _ Link pointed at his house to let the other know who he was talking about.’l o v e d t h i s. G o t f o r you’

And that was enough, despite his blatant hatred for anything that wasn’t fish Sidon decided to pick up the rice cake anyway. So… his sweetheart wasn’t the only person who could get him to challenge his own limitations, mh? Good to know.

Link hugged his own short legs watching the prince study the little cake, slowly poke it with his (awkwardly long) blue tongue and take a bite so small it almost felt ridiculous, he couldn’t help but chuckle as Sidon put a couple of crumbs in his mouth as well.

“The texture is odd.”

Sweet Hylia, it was comical how he reached forward for another microscopic bite, big shiny teeth barely chipping away a bit of crust. How could he even taste anything with small portions like that?

‘Definitely too sweet, it reminds me of honey and we only use it as medicine…”

Another small bite and Link saw the prince’s face contracted like he just bit a rotten durian. So he truly didn’t like apples, uh?

“No, I can’t do this, not even for him. I don’t really know how you can eat certain things, my friend…” He shuddered as he placed the little pastry back on the grass. 

Now Link wanted to see if he could find any fruit or vegetable the other could tolerate or even enjoy, too bad his slate was back in Samasa Plain by now… not that he wanted to risk his cover by using it in front of him anyway.

_ ‘W h a t zora e a t’ _

“What… fish, obviously. Some enjoy small quantities of rice to digest better after a big meal and others will make tea out of swift violets to rest better but… that’s all? I am quite surprised by your adaptability.”

_‘N e e d, first, p a s s i o n n e x t’_

“Was… food scarce where you used to live?”

Link froze in place, he still had to invent a story about a distant homeland. Oh, no, he wasn’t going to reply to that, only giving the other a half shrug before smashing the little, offending pastry in his mouth. If Sidon wasn’t going to eat it, he wasn’t going to waste it.

He saw Sidon’s cheeks turn blue again, he was now turning basically indifferent to it. Zoras were so weird...

“... well, I suppose we already did share food once. Anyway, you seem to know your ways around hylians so… I’d love to learn more about them.”

Link replied with a warm smile, of course he was going to help his silly brother, both with his crush and his interest in hylians. He was going to teach him about clothes, food, the tools they used, he was going to show him horses mostly meant no harm, he was going to show him… how to dance?

His trail of thoughts was interrupted by more than familiar notes and Link instantly turned to look back at Hateno not even realizing he slapped the other zora with his long head fin.

_ Almost heaven, sweet Hyrule _ _  
_ _ Dueling Peaks, Regencia River _

And he wasn’t in front of Hateno anymore, he was sitting in a tavern with soldiers older than him. They were singing, someone managed to sneak a guitar in the barracks and everyone was having fun. They had no ale nor women and some complained about it but the mood was great, Link didn’t even care about both, he just wanted to sing along but his voice tended to crack a lot and his throat was always sore recently.

It will pass. Maybe he will even find the courage to join the dancing soldiers next time they all gather together, after all he knows the steps, he helped Aryll learn them.

_Life is old there, older than the trees _ _  
_ _ Younger than the mountains, blowing like a breeze _

The pain didn’t pass but he was too busy to take care of himself, father was more and more distant after mom’s death and he couldn’t let him down, not now that he had finally been properly promoted squire. Somehow his knight seemed content with a silent servant and as long as he kept following his orders. 

It will get better, he kept repeating himself. He was wrong.

By the time Aryll forced him to see a doctor the only option left was Sheikah surgery, something incredibly expensive, or death. His family fell in misery to save his life and as much as he wished he was dead there were debts to repay and work to do. 

Father never spoke to him again but he still had Aryll.

_ Country roads, take me home __  
_ _ To the place I belong_

The zora’s head turned to look at the cottage ‘Link’ owned in Hateno but what he saw was an almost completely different building from the past: the walls were decorated with painted flowers, cuccos were running around in the garden and a young, blonde girl was preparing pumpkin soup for them. 

Between his and Father’s income they were managing to give her a decent life at least. She still worked too much for a child her age but Aryll never complained and whenever he had a day off he rushed there. She helped him learn sign language, he helped with heavy jobs around the home and they gave each other warmth, they gave each other love.

Then he saved the day with a pot lid and lots of luck, in a day he was appointed the princess’s bodyguard and he never had a chance to see his sister again. Or say goodbye. 

_ East Reservoir, Hebra mountains. _ _  
_ _ Take me home, country roads _

The castle felt like a prison, the princess hated him and his father sent him a last letter, telling him not to disgrace the family further letting everyone know he was a mute… and he desperately tried to build around himself the reputation of a silent and stoic knight even if all he wanted was joining people his age and maybe play music as they sang around him.

Did he even remember how to play the accordion?

_All my memories gather round her _ _  
_ _ Knight’s daughter, beautiful blue eyes _

He wanted to go see Aryll, he desperately wanted to go home, yet he was THE knight and he wasn’t even allowed to think about another place but the castle nor another woman but Zelda. 

Even if the sword rejected him at first he insisted and insisted on trying to wield it, sometimes even fainting when the weapon hurt him too much,until the spirit inside it accepted him.

_ You’re not the chosen one _, a voice said in his head

_ I know _ answered him.

He still managed to trick everyone, for his family, for her.

“You will no longer be known as Tristan.” The King’s words sealing his fate “You will be known as Link from today.”

_ Tired and dusty, I look at the sky _ _  
_ _ Misty taste of noble pursuit, teardrop in my eye _

There’s no Hateno, only his room near the princess’s chambers and a pile of letters that returned unopened. Either she was no longer living in their old house or she refused even to read what he sent her… and while rationally he knew their father probably forced her to move he still felt like the latter option was more appropriate. 

He had never been a worthy son, he couldn’t even make the princess happy now and she kept escaping his guard, he didn’t deserve Aryll.

_ Country roads, take me home _  
_ To the place I belong, _  
_ East Reservoir, Hebra mountains. _ _  
_Take me home, country roads

It took him forever to see the truth: the princess was as lost as him. 

They were both desperately trying to give a sense to their lives and failing, both wanting a place to call home and both unable to find it. What both had were duties and fathers who were unhappy with them, what a wonderful situation.

_ I hear her voice, in the morning hour she calls me _  
_ This song reminds me of my home far away _  
_ And running down the road I get a feeling _ _  
_That I should have been home yesterday, yesterday

In his position he finally managed to find out what happened to his sister: she had been taken in as maid by a noble family. Father didn’t even ask what she wanted, he just sent a carriage to take her away from home.

In his position he managed to make sure she would be the one getting his inheritance if he died, as the chosen one he was now making more money than he needed, but despite everything… none of his letters managed to reach her.

The dream to see his house in Hateno one last time before the impending calamity was no longer relevant, what was the point if she wasn’t there for him?

Another memory was already forming in front of his eyes when two strong hands shaking his shoulders snapped him out of his stupor.

“Lulu!”

The melancholic song kept playing in the background as Link slowly regained full awareness of his surroundings. Sidon was half out of the small pond, he apparently had to shake him to make him snap back to reality… oh how strange knowing he was the one who touched him first and…

Oh… Link’s fingers slowly moved to his face as he realized he had been crying.

“I apologize for… you were shaking. What’s wrong, my friend?”

What a great moment to remember… and just because both him and Aryll used to sing it together, at least until he lost his voice. How ironic, he managed to return home after all but his Old Self was right: it wasn’t home anymore.

Or was it? He wasn’t the Old Link anymore, he just had some of his memories and feelings, right? It was so hard to say when the line between past and present was so blurred.Blue eyes wandered on the old building studying all the changes, he didn’t care of what Sidon would think in that moment.

Did Aryll even survive the calamity? Did she manage to have a good life? How could he forget about her for such a long time? Shaky hands raised up as he tried to think about a coherent sentence to justify what just happened.

‘I was…’

The prince’s attention immediately went to his fingers as Link desperately tried to focus on what he needed to say, not on how he felt at the moment.

_‘M e m o r y. N o t i m p o r t a n t.’_

Sidon grimaced, clearly not convinced. The last thing he needed was to get him involved right now: the shark had seen what suddenly recovering memories did to him before, if more was to come Link had to get out of Hateno _ fast. _

“I beg to differ, my friend, but if you don’t wish to talk about it, I will respect that.” Oh, you adorable giant shark “Just tell me something… is there anything I can do to help?”

Kind to a fault as usual, was that really surprising? Link shook his head, offering a weak smile and closing his eyes for a moment. The lingering feeling of his old self were starting to fade, fortunately enough, and the desperate need to look for someone who was in any case already dead with it.

That was His family back then, ghosts of a past long gone, and like all memories he couldn’t let those take over in any way. It was true he lost a sister and a father but he also got another sister in Zelda, not to mention Sidon was… 

_ ‘You a l r e a d y h e l p. I am g o o d. S o r r y.’ _

“There is no need to apologize, if anything I’m sorry if I said anything that-”

Link shook his head, it wasn’t the zora’s fault. He could blame the music, being near his old home with a horse that seemed to come straight from his past, spending the night between people that made him feel like he was back in time… but he certainly couldn't blame Sidon in any way.

_ ‘You g o o d. J u s t n o s t a l g i a. N o w…’ _

He raised his hands against the prince’s armored shoulders and pushed him back in the pond, even if the wave of sadness and regret was over Link still wanted to take time for himself, he wanted to take his horse and ride in the night.

_ ‘S l e e p’ _

“Oh… Aren’t you… joining me? I mean, it wouldn’t be the most appropriate thing but I am starting to accept it’s… irrelevant when it comes to you.”

Yes, Sidon was an amazing little sibling himself. Even if he couldn’t be close to him as Link anymore he was content with how things were. He had his freedom, he had two horse moms and he still had a wonderful friend right there.

‘T o o m a n y p e o p l e t o s l e e p’

He commented pointing at the city. While it wasn’t true, he could easily sleep in full barracks surrounded by snoring men, it was still the perfect excuse to get some alone time. That was perfect, wasn’t it?

Probably not considering he saw a flash of disappointment in the other’s face, immediately followed by a flash of realization and the expression of someone who just bit something incredibly bitter.

Uh… what? What was going on now? He wished he could read the other’s mind at times.

“I… yes, I understand. You need your solitude and it would also be greatly inappropriate for us to share water.”

Okay, that was a sudden shift from the ‘I guess you’re so weird social norms don’t really apply to you’ of a moment earlier but, hey, if Sidon wasn’t going to protest he-

“Goodnight, friend.”

And before Link could even reply Sidon was already underwater. He could still see him there, the pond could barely contain his body, and it just felt… weird. Oh, well, it saved Link any trouble of having to convince the other to part.

A quick glance to the red form in the water, one to his sleeping horse in the small stable, he couldn’t definitely bother her now, and Link was off in the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a bit worried about the pacing of the story but, hey, I didn't write fanfictions in, what? 15 years? Suggestions and comments are, as usual, appreciation. I'm especially open to negative criticism since I know I have a lot to improve.
> 
> Also you can rip the 'BOTW Link wasn't the chosen one, he was merely incredibly stubborn' headcanon out of my cold dead hands.


	6. So your beloved is- WHAT?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to thank [Lohikäärme (NotWritingSavvy)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NotWritingSavvy/pseuds/Lohik%C3%A4%C3%A4rme) for the wonderful Zora!Link fanart you can find[ here](https://twitter.com/lohikaar/status/1179105279075471360) <3 I love it!

The pond behind Link’s house was pleasantly warm, clean and while the smell he could feel through his gills was quite different from what Sidon was used to he liked that. Now that the fair was finally over there was only silence around them and between fireflies and stars the place was simply beautiful...

Yet the prince couldn’t relax. At all.

After sinking to the bottom of the small body of water Sidon only found himself dealing with confusion and a growing sense of guilt: while talking with Lulu for a moment he truly felt like he was talking with Link.

The way he seemed to lose himself in a distant memory, how he tried to dismiss his own distress after realizing what happened… that felt so incredibly familiar. It wasn’t the first time Sidon noticed similarities between the two even if he always dismissed it as him being a delusional zora who needed answers,

Was he so desperate to find the Hylian again he started projecting him into others? Was that the point he was reaching now?

Sidon groaned allowing bubbles to escape to the surface, the King was right when he said things were starting to get out of control but the prince couldn’t help it: he wanted to find Link, he needed it, and despite all the noble talks he knew he had his own selfish reasons to do so.

Sidon wanted to make sure Link was safe, that was his priority, but he also wanted to see him at least one more time and make his feelings known. It took him some time to process how he felt, he was resting in the small ponds at the feet of Rito Village when Sidon finally realized his desperate desire to find the hero wasn’t only driven by friendship or gratitude- and he wanted the other to know.

He loved Link.

And even if the chances of him not liking a _ male of another species _ were high the prince often lost himself in thoughts fantasizing about their eventual reunion: Link in distress, the zora prince bravely saving the day and carrying the other man to safety between his arm. Now, he knew Link wasn’t the kind of person who usually needed saving, he was a proud and fearless knight, but in his little world he allowed himself to be the hero now and then.

Especially because it helped him keep his hopes alive when almost everyone else already gave up looking for the champion.

Sidon’s head slowly appeared above the surface and he scanned the area searching for the golden zora, sighing with relief when he realized he was alone. The last thing he wanted at the moment was facing the source of his current turmoil.

While at times being with Lulu made Sidon’s heart flutter he knew far too well that only happened because the other zora reminded him of the man he loved: he was a strong warrior, resourceful… watching him interact with the village’s children had been a delight too and Lulu never hesitated to gift him things even if they weren’t related or courting. He… liked that? They were both mute, both had the most beautiful blue eyes… goddess, Sidon was so weak.

That being said, despite all their similarities the two were also opposites in many ways: while Link rarely smiled, focusing mostly on his duties and his path, Lulu often had a smug grin painted on his face, the golden zora wasn’t afraid of showing happiness or passion while to see what Link truly liked you had to pay attention to smaller details like how his ears tended to flicker whenever he was delighted and how his eyes filled with joy in front of food or whenever he talked about his Goddess forsaken horse.

Sidon sighed resting his head on the grass. The fact he probably also liked the golden zora wasn’t going to make things easier for him, especially considered he almost _ called him Link _.

They were their own person and he needed to remember that: no spell was able to change a person’s species anyway and overlapping his feelings for Link and his modest interest for Lulu was a disservice to both. Especially considering the latter made it clear more than once he wasn’t courting him in any way even when the events seemed to suggest otherwise.

“And finding you, my dear, that is the priority anyway. For your sake and for the peace of my soul.”

He turned to look at the dark building at his side, Zelda already checked inside apparently but Sidon didn’t really know what to try anymore and… that seemed the only remaining option. 

The man slowly moved out of the pond, knowing very well he wasn’t going to get any sleep that night: he looked up at the sky, wondering once more where the other could be, then lowered his gaze to the sleeping horse. Sidon swallowed, nervously, then took a step in her direction.

\- - - 

Link loved Hateno by night but he didn’t feel like relaxing under the starry sky: feelings of sadness and solitude still lingered, untriggered memories were still there barely beyond reach, calling for him despite his desire to avoid them. He knew his life ‘before’ had been unpleasant, he could now understand why his first visit in the hylian settlement almost brought tears to his eyes, but… he couldn’t mix his old self’s life with the one he had now.

Aryll’s bright smile that vividly appeared in front of him whenever he tried to close his eyes seemed to suggest otherwise.

He knew he was a different person now but that didn’t mean he wasn’t affected by whatever he could recover… and he hated that. Link wasn’t supposed to be vulnerable, not as hylian nor as a zora, and those feelings weren’t…. his.

Before he knew it he was already swimming in Narvata lake, climbing its fall, crossing the small plateau with the same name… and charging forward in the hope to find two of the creatures he was used to see back in the days of the Red Moon.

Sadly the golden maned lynel he killed far too many times was nowhere to be found, but the hinox by purifier lake was there, still sleeping. Link didn’t know how monsters returned to life after Ganon’s defeat, he only knew sometimes they still appeared in their territories after being slain, but he was in his own way grateful for that.

Fighting was a great way to distance his mind from whatever was bothering him and attacking monsters also server to protect others, wasn’t it perfect? The soldier grabbed one of the bottles of sneaky potion he prepared with Sidon and swallowed the content before crossing the small body of water and silently walking near the hinox. Link carefully moved on his open hand, waiting until the giant tried to scratch his stomach being basically placed on his stomach.

Perfect!

Pushing memories of cuccos and warm soups aside he stopped studying the weapons around its neck. The royal bow was certainly good but without arrows it was as useless as a tree branch… but he could use both the royal halberd and broadsword. 

Golden hands carefully moved to untie the knots around his weapons of choice and Link turned to check its ankles. No protections of sort, good. A wide grin appeared on his lips as he readied himself for battle. 

Sparks of electricity gathered in the air as he woke up the beasts with the electric eel equivalent of Urbosa’s fury, the game was on.

Disconnecting from everything and only focusing on dodging, parrying and hurting the other creature was exactly what he needed. The sword easily penetrated the skin of the flaccid monster way too easily so he tossed it away favoring his fangs and claw instead, the terrain shaking under the giant’s hits made Link’s spine shiver in delight, he truly needed this.

As expected the long, sharp toes made climbing on the creature piercing its flesh a joke despite all the goo covering his body, Link found himself laughing like a maniac as he kept scratching and biting the monster while sticking to him like a parasite, the Hinox basically unable to get a proper hold of him during the fight.

Even when the giant tried to fall and squish the zora under his weight Link only changed position as fast as possible, picking another place to attack.

By the end of the fight the giant was lying in the small body of water with the halberd stuck in its head. It had been fun, too much fun for comfort now that he stopped looking at all the wounds he inflicted before striking it down.

Sitting on one of the rocks he sighed, negative feelings or not he got himself carried away there. He didn’t necessarily feel guilty, it wasn’t like monsters ever treated him with gloves, but he still knew the difference between a fair battle and hurting for the sake of doing so.

If only he had the lynel there, that would have been a worthy battle.

At least he was feeling already better? The adrenaline and the pain of the few hits he received helped clearing his mind and there were no longer abandoned sisters or judgmental fathers knocking at the door of his mind.

A deep breath and Link got on his feet, it took him a couple of hours to get there and it was probably going to take the same to return… but hopefully he was going to be back before dawn. Mostly because if he was lucky Kilton was still going to be near the town and he had a lot of hinox parts to exchange for mons now.

Mh, who knew what Sidon was going to think about monster cake.

\- - -

Returning to Hateno had been harder than he anticipated because, of course, it started raining. Slimy hands and wet rocks didn’t really agree with each other and carrying a bag full of hnox parts only made things harder, by the time he finally managed to reach the top of Narvata’s plateau the sun was already starting to raise in the distance.

Well, if he hurried he could probably still make it- while he had a stash of monster extract in his slate Link wanted to try to cook something with it for his big red friend. If even Hunnie fell for its taste it could be what Link needed to expand his friend’s culinary tastes.

Or at least to see him making silly faces once more. He absolutely needed to tell him ‘Link loves it’ too, after all the hylian did live in Hateno for a while and someone was bound to know his tastes, right?

The zora grinned widely, since the ‘wildberry incident’ it had been clear zora diet was way more strict than he imagined but Sidon’s faces while trying the apple tart were priceless. Now, he just had to decide if he wanted to speak with Kilton or not, it was highly improbable the merchant was going to tell others about him anyway and… Link wasn’t his only client, was he? Who knows if Chabi ever managed to find him…

Anyway he wondered if it was appropriate to use sign language proper-

“Oh, Link! Man, the stench of hinox had my hopes up for a moment but it looks it’s just you. Do you have the goods?”

Okay, there was no fooling Kilton’s nose, was it? Link sighed tossing the bag in front of the shop for the other to check.

_ ‘No one has to know who I am.’ _

“Then you come late to the party, I think at least two other people know you’re a yellow zora by now- oh, who taught you how to butcher? Such a slappy job on those guts… using those claws to dig in the flesh is such a terrible idea.”

He blinked. Once. Twice. Wha… who knew? Him, Lunch, now Kilton apparently but he had been overly careful in not showing his true nature. He mostly avoided people, he barely spoke and only with broken sentences now and then and he was of a whole different species!

_ ‘Go back, you said someone else knows? Who?’ _

“Well, who do you think paid for the mask? And then there’s the one who made it, of course. He’s an inspiration, I’ve been trying to learn from him, actually… oh, you should see my Talus costume, it’s still a bit on the heavy side but I know you’d love it.”

The zora was just standing there with his mouth open wide. He was positive the chest with the mask had been buried for a long time, all the ones he found were ancient relics and the zora one didn’t seem different, and…

_ ‘Someone paid for it?’ _

“Of course! Zoras are specialized in healing, they said, the perfect product, right? Not as cool as monsters but I appreciate a true master’s handwork”

He stepped between the merchant and the hinox parts, wanting his full attention. This was the first time in months he met someone who seemed to have any kind of lead about his little situation and he wanted answers.

_ ‘Who? Who did this and how do I take it off?’’ _

“I don’t know who made sure you found it but his services are expensive, you know? And you can’t take it off until it fulfills its purpose, the reason it was made! I’ve been told past you had it easy, all he did was play some music and get some eggs, the purpose of yours, thought? Perhaps it’s your time to be a doctor, you know?”

Why couldn’t he have a normal conversation with that guy? Link’s hands were shaky as he raised them again. Music? He could probably find something to play in the village. Healing? He had no clue on who could use a medic right now, everyone he knew seemed perfectly healthy. Zelda, perhaps? He… his whole life had been devoted to Hyrule’s queen, what if he left her when she needed help? Not to mention he lacked any healing power of sort…

_ ‘I’m an alchemist, not a doctor, and I can only heal my wounds with Mipha’s lingering power… what am I even supposed to do? Who needs my help?’ _

“Why are you asking me? If I was you I’d keep the mask, it’s an honor to wear his stuff, believe me!”

_ ‘I want to keep it but-’ _

And that’s where his hands froze. It was the first time he openly admitted that, even to himself. Life before the mask felt dull, distant, even if he was the hero who saved the world he always followed a hero’s code, he acted thinking about what people expected from a hero first, he never followed his feelings.

Like the man he was before.

So much money, so much fame, but the only person who truly saw him was his horse. Everyone had their perfect idea of him in their mind and he always did his best not to break the illusion.

As Lulu the weird zora he was free.

_ ‘I don’t want to go back to my old life.’ _

“Then don’t go! Where is the problem?”

_ ‘It’s selfish-’ _

“Your smell will always have a note of stalfos because you died for this land, I think it’s okay to be selfish for once.”

_ ‘I shouldn’t-’ _

“Listen, it’s all nice and lovely but it’s time for me to close up. I’ve been told to save some things for you and it’s about time you decided to pick them up.”

_ ‘Who?’ _

“Can’t say names, I even signed a contract and they paid with a bag full of Lanmola carapace. That stuff is extinct, I couldn’t say no.”

_ ‘Can’t I buy you the name with lynel parts?’ _

“Find me a living peahat and we’ll talk about that.”

A what? He never even heard of monsters with such name. But the sun was rising and the cart was already starting to fade in front of his eyes. Fuck, he needed more informations, he needed-

“Well, that was a fun chat-” Kilton jumped back at his usual place “-but now I have to go. Enjoy your toys, the hinox job was messy but it covered the price. Bye!”

And with those words the merchant was gone, only a bag remained on the grass in front of him. Great… he definitely needed to find Kilton again as soon as the sun was down. Reluctantly he opened the sack only to find the monster extract he needed, a weird machine consisting in a chain and a hook and… oh.

Oh, sweet Hylia.

Someone sent him an accordion.

\- - - 

By the time Sidon reached the village Link had already spent a couple of hours playing music in the streets of Hateno. At first his fingers barely coordinated on the little keyboards and his long claws kept getting in the ways but before he knew it muscle memory from a whole life before kicked in and he found himself bringing back to life old tunes only the elders seemed to remember.

Not that it seemed to stop the local kids from listening to “Mr. Banana’”s show, zoras were already a rarity outside the domain but a bard one? That had to be an unique sight.

Mind you, he wasn’t remotely as good as Kass nor he knew so many melodies but he remembered some children's songs and that was all he needed for now. He… he played those for the little girl in his memories, didn’t he? While he still considered himself his own person after the shrine of resurrection Hateno still managed to bring back… something.

And he felt happy.

Link greeted the prince with a wide smile and a tilt of his head, inviting him to come closer and join the small group. He knew he probably looked ridiculous with a smile going from fin to fin and with watery eyes when there was nothing to be sad about but… honestly? He didn’t care. 

Link had a reputation to protect, Lulu didn’t.

And considering how calm Sidon seemed as he approached and sat down by his side to listen it seemed he didn’t mind either. His expression seemed a bit off, somehow, but Link couldn’t quite pinpoint what was wrong with it and by the time his song ended it was clear the show was over.

“You never cease to amaze me, my friend.”

_ ‘You w a n t m a y o r?’ _

“I… yes. And I would love to have you by my side when I’ll enter the house. It still is invading a man’s privacy…”

‘_ You g o t me b i g b o y _’

They both watched as the kids scattered around returning to their games. It was perfect, Link just had to sneak in the house using the tool shed before Sidon’s return and leave the letters inside then play dumb until it was time to enter ‘together’.

Link happily waved his tail without even realizing, this wasn’t going to bring ‘Link’ back but it was definitely going to fix everything. Sidon, Zelda, everyone was going to move on and- hey, if he found a way to get rid of the mask he could still ‘manage to return’, right?

“One more thing…” the shark cleared his throat, something Link started to associate with him being nervous “... once I’m done checking the house… if we have more time… would you accept to play more music for me?”

Was he… blushing? Yes, blue hues were more than evident on his face. Why was a prince so shy about asking for favors? That was adorable. He chuckled and offered the prince an elegant bow.

_ ‘W i l l g i v e you a s h o w. N o w g o g e t k e y. I g o t o h o r s e’ _

“Yes. Yes! Thank you, Lulu, I will meet you back at the champion’s cabin!”

And off he was, trotting in the word direction at the highest speed the short zora legs allowed him to. Was Link going to stop Sidon to let him know unlike the domain a building on top of the rest didn’t translate in a more important place or was he going to let him know about Purah’s laboratory?

‘More time for me’ he decided in the end before walking back to his old place.

\- - - 

By the time Sidon was back not only Link’s letters were already conveniently placed in a spot relatively easy to see but the yellow zora even managed to brush his horse and get breakfast down. Bless Hylia for inventing sweets.

Wait, were the shark’s hands shaking? Link waited for a moment before ignoring all the rules about Zora etiquette and placing his hands on Sidon’s to steady them and allowing him to open the door. Was… trespassing such a terrible crime by zora standards?

_ ‘You o k a y?’ _

Sidon closed his eyes, inhaling deeply before offering an answer.

“Yes. Yes I’m okay. I’m fine. No I’m not… but I will be fine.” A pause before he dared to return the gesture holding Link’s hands between his “I’m… I admit I’m afraid. This is the last chance for me to find a lead and… he means the world to me.”

That was probably one of the sweetest things anyone ever said to him. He received compliments all the time but they never felt real, but Sidon had no idea of who he was and he was so genuinely worried… 

‘H y l i a n. T o r e a s s u r e.’

“Uh?”

Sidon only managed to blink before being dragged down, Link’s lips meeting the spot where an hylian forehead would be. Zelda did that with Link at times, Link knew he used to do the same with Aryll in the past, it was perfectly acceptable brotherly behavior… right?

The prince’s sharp inhale and the way he tensed let him know easily he underestimated once more how easy to fluster zora were. At least after the initial tension he actually heard him laugh, nerves finally relaxing a bit even if he was pulling back.

“My friend, I understand you’ve been raised with different rules than me but I should inform that area is not only extremely sensitive but also… usually reserved for… intimate contact.”

_ ‘G u e s s I c a n t h e l p b u t c o u r t you’ _

“You’d be surprised by how many people in the Domain would say the same…” Of course, he could remember Tula and the others fawning over Sidon and they weren’t probably the only ones “Yet it seems I’m rather unlucky in love.”

So the horse owning zora Sidon had feelings for… had no interest in the prince? That couldn’t be true, Sidon was one of the sweetest persons Link had ever met and from what he understood about zora aesthetic he was also incredibly attractive. A wall of muscles and kindness, what was not to love there?

_ ‘I b e t you’re w r o n g’ _

“I hope so… but I guess I will see after finding Link.”

Oh no, he was eve waiting on his confession because he felt he owed his hylian self help or something? Stupid, stupid shark! Link waited in silence as Sidon readied himself with some deep breaths, there had been a sudden change in his expression but again the yellow one couldn’t really understand what it meant.

“Actually… if you don’t mind I think I should go inside on my own.” Link shrugged, not a problem for him even if it was weird how the zora seemed to change his mind so easily “I… I will see you soon, my dear.”

He simply patted the red Zora’s back and opened his cabin door, the inside was dark but even zora knew how to lit candles, right? For a moment he stood there, his gills barely picking up the typical scent of a place that had been locked for far too long.

Home. Their home. Link’s home. And now once more an abandoned place.

Perhaps he could have mentioned in his letters the intention to pass it to someone else? It was too late to think about that anyway and when Link met Sidon’s gaze he knew the other wanted to be alone.

He needed to wait, things were going to be fine.

\- - - 

Link was actually happy as he returned from Hateno with supplies of wheat, milk, sugar cane and eggs- he had a couple of ideas and he was eager to make Sidon try new stuff. The pot was hardly the best place where to prepare a cake but he had enough experience of cooking without an oven to know how to work around it. 

He was going to prepare a batter, cook two layers separately after placing a metal sheet and some ashes on top and then work on the rest. for the cream filling that was going to be done later, he needed a whip and a bowl from his house to do so but at the moment Link didn’t feel like disturbing Sidon.

“Eh…”

He smiled preparing the fire and recovering some large sheets of metal from behind the house, there was no doubt his plan was going to work out perfectly and he could then offer Sidon a slice of cake to celebrate his goodbyes. Not that the shark was probably going to appreciate it but.. did it really matter?

When he placed the flour on the first tray the problems started to emerge almost immediately: how was he supposed to mix the whole thing when his body was completely covered in goo? He Probably already grossed out Sidon enough whenever they touched, the last thing he wanted was feeding him that crap as well.

Another trip to the village was basically required as he proceeded to purchase some leather gloves before returning to his culinary adventures. They were incredibly uncomfortable considering zora fingers were partially united by thin layers of skin but there weren’t really many other options.

Other challenges? He had only one proper bowl to mix the batter so it really took him a lot of effort to carefully make a ring with flour and basically preparing the whole thing only in the middle. A wasteful way to handle things? Certainly, he still hoped to find other ways to use it, even if anything containing monster extract tended to be… inedible for the most part.

By the time all was ready the sun was already high in the sky and Link could hear his stomach rumbling. Okay… time to get some fish for himself and mr.handsome inside, right? He grinned looking at the pot containing the first layer of cake now baking, this was going to take some time and he probably had time for a trip to the local store.

Talking about him, what was taking the prince so long anyway? Were the letters too hard to find? The zora placed both hands on his hips and sighed, nothing bad was going to happen if he decided to help for once, right? He could just point at the right direction pretending to grab something else…

He gently rubbed Chestnut’s braids and placed a kiss on her nose before walking inside the house, he also needed to get her some fresh apples too. Okay, time to help Sidon around, things were going to get so good from there: they were going to become brothers again as zoras, “Link” was going to be missing until he found out the mask’s true purpose and maybe Sidon was finally going to introduce him to this sweetheart of his.

He… was honestly curious about this horse loving lady and even if ‘Lulu’ was still going to live outside the city and travel on his own perhaps it wasn’t such a terrible idea making a friend or two. All was going according to plans, all was....

… not good.

His fins flattened against his body as he stepped in, Sidon wasn’t exploring his house, nor checking the cabinets with the enthusiasm he expected from how the other acted just the day before. The shark was simply sitting on one of the small chairs of Link’s house using the table for support and he looked absolutely… miserable. His scales looked messy and out of place, all his fins deflated against his body and if the water droplets on the letters were any indication-

Oh. He found them. And opened them all. Why… why was he so upset?

“... ah?”

He tried to get the other’s attention with that small vocalization only to receive no answer, Sidon didn’t even acknowledge his presence and Link found himself unsure on what to do. He… didn’t write anything that was worth crying there, did he?

“Ah?”

A second attempt, this time walking close enough to gently nudge the other’s shoulder piece and the next thing he knew Sidon’s arms were around him as the red zora pressed his face against Link’s shoulder, his breath shorts like someone who was barely holding back tears.

Sweet Hylia, years of training never prepared him for a situation like that, wasn’t it against zora culture or something getting so close? Not to mention Link wasn’t exactly the cleanest fish considering his skin situation, still the prince seemed to ignore the slime as he… squeezed the eel in a bone crushing hug.

“... uuuh?”

“He left. He’s gone. He just wrote us a letter and said us all goodbye.” He could feel the prince’s teeth brush against his skin as he talked and Link had to breathe deeply to ignore his fight or flee reflex, it was the worst possible moment for accidentally punching Sidon “He didn’t even think to visit us one last time, we just… he just…”

Sidon’s whole body tensed even further and Link tried to step back only to find himself trapped by the other’s grasp. Oh, dear… he awkwardly tried to pat Sidon’s back to comfort him a bit, that was an excessive reaction to a missing friend. He was flattered, sure, but it wasn’t like they were actually related or anything.

“And… it’s his handwriting, I would recognize it anywhere, yet the words…” Link felt Sidon’s arms move away, his hands slamming on the table with enough force to crack the old surface “Who is this man? I don’t know him. Look at the letter, LOOK!”

Link wanted to point out that it was impossible for anyone to read something that was basically smashed against their face but the prince didn’t give him time, starting to pace around the room holding the piece of paper, glaring at it with rage.

“_ My dearest friend Sidon, I leave this letter behind to inform you duty calls me in the Great Beyond and I will soon leave Hyrule to fulf- _” he didn’t even manage to finish the sentence, Sidon almost crushed the letter between his hands “He left Hyrule and he didn’t tell anyone! Not a single soul! I’ve been out there searching everywhere for any hint, I even crossed the fucking desert in his name and he just… I had no chance. He’s Beyond. I didn’t even know there was something behind our land, I just assumed it was empty.”

Right…. most people never climbed the highest mountains and never saw the large gardens outside, endless prairies the goddesses locked behind anyone’s reach. He knew there was _ more _ outside, it was something almost familiar and sometimes he could even recall names, but… uh, thinking about it he probably chose the worst way to start that letter.

“Blah blah blah… _ I know it’s asking much but, please, if you can keep me in your memories _ . And- he just… he wrote this to every single one of us. And then he talks like he’s not worth of us… like he’s not worth of _ me _!”

The yellow zora just… blinked. It wasn’t what he meant, he merely wanted his friends to be able to move on knowing he wasn’t going to expect much or hold any grudge if they forgot. Was he so rusty in terms of social skills he messed up his message?

“And then… and then he proceeds to talk like he’s going to die, like it’s some kind of tragic mission with no chance of return. And it’s almost like he _ wants _ that!”

Yes he did… he was just saying goodbye! Link’s fingers twitched as he repressed the strong desire to correct the other, to let him know he didn’t mean anything like that. It wasn’t like he was so important in the great scheme of things, not now that his reason to be had been fulfilled anyway, but he wasn’t necessarily seeking death or anything.

Fuck, he only managed to put Sidon in further distress, the zora’s claw already ripped the letter in multiple places and he kept moving back and forth in the small living room like he didn’t know what to do.

‘_ M a y b e he _’

“And THEN-” The prince didn’t even bother to read Link’s fingers before continuing “here is the kicker. He calls me brother.”

The knight took a step back at that, was he wrong in assuming they were… that close? It actually hurt feeling so rejected in what didn’t seem such a big deal, Sidon sounded offended by the simple thought.

“How dares he?”

He just wanted to disappear right now- but how? Why? It was Sidon who had been clear more than once about how much he cared, even back in the days he had been the one who pointed out they would have been brothers in law if Mipha lived, and now he-

“I just don’t understand… in all letters… why does he talk like he doesn’t matter? He’s so dismissive of himself, almost like he expects us to brush him away with ease and just proceed with our lives like he has never been part of it.”

Sidon’s tail hit Link’s spices cabinet as he turned around the house, yet he seemed to ignore the colorful powders now covering the floor. Okay, Link was going to mourn his energetic rhino beetle powder another moment, for now…

_ ‘Stop!’ _

At least the shark managed to stop when the smaller zora walked in front of him. 

_ ‘M a y b e he j u s t w a n t s you to g o o n w i t h o u t w o r r y.’ _

“Oh, yes, I can totally relax now that I know I may never see him again.”

_ ‘W h y’ _

“Because I can’t accept he’s gone.”

_ ‘W h y’ _

Again, if he was so upset about Link calling him brother what was even the point of-

“Because I love him! Why do you think I traveled across most of Hyrule looking for him? He is the one dear to my heart even if I am starting to suspect I may know him way less than I thought...”

What… wait. No. No no no… Link’s hand suddenly felt as heavy as lead, his fingers stiff like someone glued his bones together. He couldn’t even hear the words that followed as a strong, primitive fear found its way in him.

Wrong. That was so wrong. They were both men, there couldn’t be romantic love between him and Sidon. There were words in the background as the shark picked out other pieces of his letter, condemning it, but Link’s brain couldn’t really register any of that.

Family was a man and a woman, not two men, he.... oh Hylia, he didn’t even realize he was ruining Sidon’s life. He was a prince, he couldn’t…. he shouldn’t…

‘_ I’m sorry _’.

Link didn’t even realize he wasn’t supposed to speak properly, he was just so… afraid? He knew some of his men were… like that. He pitied them. It wasn’t right. Love between two men or two women didn’t really exist, it was simply people making poor life choices- and now he was indirectly guilty of bringing his best friend on the wrong path.

He had never been more grateful about having the mask, Link was now gone, Sidon had a chance to heal and-

‘_ I’m really, really sorry _.’

“... Lulu?”

The eel’s hands were shaking and uncoordinated, his scales a mess, even Sidon interrupted his rant to check on him. He was trying to keep control, yet Link’s breathing was heavy and fast, his vision blurry behind a veil of tears.

‘_ What will your father think? _ ’ Sidon’s eyes grew wide as he stared at Link’s hands ‘ _ What will everyone think _?’

“You… know how to speak?”

‘_ I learn fast- you’re making a terrible mistake there.’ _

“What are you talking about?”

_ ‘He’s a man!’ _

The red zora seemed absolutely baffled by the statement, like he couldn’t grasp the gravity of the situation. A little part of Link wanted to be happy because his reaction clearly took Sidon enough by surprise to distract him from the letters but the rest of him was just…. panicking. 

_ ‘Two men cannot be together! You’ll disgrace your whole family, people will hurt you.” _

After that he tried to say coherently express how everyone would talk, how following such perverse inclinations would only lead to an unhappy life, yet his hands only moved erratically as he tried to push too many things together mixing words in a total mess. 

Why, why was he feeling like that?

“Did… someone hurt you? For that?”

Link’s head darted up to look at the red shark, his eyes wide open in shock as he quickly shook his head. No, of course not, he never liked anyone, not like that. He just didn’t have certain needs, he never had, and love was something he never-

There was no way he was going to stain the hero’s name in such a despicable way!

_ ‘What will your father think?’ _

That was all he managed to repeat after a moment, Sidon only seemed to frown before placing down the letter he held so tight until a moment earlier: while his soul was in turmoil as well he seemed able to push it aside in front of Link’s unexpected reaction.

“I apologize for causing you such distress, my friend, but I assure you I-”

_ ‘Stop looking for him’ _

“I’m afraid I cannot do that.”

_ ‘Stop looking for him’ _

“I am sorry this is upsetting you 

_ ‘You said this was going to be your last trip!’ _

“I know what I said, I know what my father ordered but one cannot control their-”

_ ‘Someone will kill you!’ _

“You’re… clearly not thinking straight right now. Come here, this is what my dad does when I lose control.”

And while Link attempted to step back as the other approached he wasn’t coordinated enough to escape his arms as Sidon pulled him between his arms, cradling him like a baby. He tried to push back, free himself and regain enough freedom to tell the prince once more how wrong he was in his feelings, how dangerous it was feeling certain things and how he needed to move on but somehow he felt weak and after struggling for a moment he just gave up resting on Sidon’s lap.

Not only he failed Mipha all those years ago, he was now going to ruin her brother’s life.

He was the worst.

\- - -

By the time someone decided to bother them Sidon’s back was hurting like hell and his skin was incredibly dry and itchy in certain points but he still didn’t dare to move since the other fell asleep between his arms when his adrenaline rush worn off. The zora couldn’t quite understand what caused the other man’s panic attack but it surprised him enough to momentarily steal his attention from Link’s letters.

Finding the Hylian still was a priority, he absolutely needed to speak with Zelda about this Great Beyond… and that could probably be done organizing a royal visit to Hyrule’s castle.

In the meanwhile, thought....

“You worry me, my friend.”

Lulu was still resting his face against the prince’s chest, his gills gently fluttering and his fingers occasionally twitching. While Sidon couldn’t say he knew too much about the other zora the common trip to Hateno had clearly been a terrible idea considering how he zoned out the night before and his reaction when he discovered who Sidon’s beloved was. 

It was so… wrong considering that despite the rocky start of their friendship Lulu had always been the strong one between them, always ready to offer a confident smile or even a reassuring (and indecent) touch whenever was needed.

The shark sighed, trying to order his thought and emotions as well when the door cracked open and a girl from the village stepped in.

“Hey, are you two okay? Whatever was in the pot outside is charcoal now, the smoke kind of alarmed me.”

Oh… that explained the strange smell his gills could perceive, Lulu was probably preparing something for himself before… well, all of that.

“We’re fine, ma’am, I apologize for forgetting about our meal but our sense of smell is quite limited out of water and…”

“It’s okay, just make sure you clean the stuff a bit later. You, everyone shares stuff around here and we all make sure to keep things ready for whoever may need them next.”

“We will leave everything as we found it, I promise.”

“That’s good then. Neh, listen… you sure you two are okay? Can’t say I’ve ever seen one of your kind before but you look pretty much like, you know, trash. Anything I can do to help?”

“I…” He was about to tell her that everything was fine, he was merely waiting for his friend to wake up before packing and leaving for the domain once more, but Sidon lowered his gaze for a second on his sleeping friend and any good intention was thrown away “Actually, my lady… if it’s not too much I’d love to ask you some questions about Hylian culture.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Turns out I don't really like writing dramatic moments but that's how this chapter had to roll. Internalized homophobia added to the tags and GODS there was so much whining in this chapter... but now it's over. Oh, and I guess now you can figure out why Link was so 'oblivious' about Sidon's feelings.
> 
> Thanks for sticking for me for so long, everyone, always keep in mind I'm open to suggestions to improve my writing and all.


	7. Denial is not just a river in Hyrule

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning: the first part is strongly tinted with homophobia and abuse and serves to explain why Link's self denial is so strong. Please, if you're really uncomfortable with the topic skip at the first "- - -" that I use to separate different parts. This chapter was probably the hardest one to write for me so far but YOLO, right? Also: I tried to be respectful but please, let me know if you think I didn't portray things correctly. I can only do so much research and this is sadly such a wide topic...
> 
> I also want to thank you all for all your wonderful support, you're the real MVP here and reading your comments and speculations makes writing this even funnier. I love you all!

Large crowds are ugly, the adults tends to squish him between his legs and last time he got lost for an hour and father got really, really angry. Father is scary when he’s angry but he’s trying really hard to be a good boy and since he managed to defeat some knights in combat things have been okay, this is why he’s not afraid to hold his hand for once.

He’ll not get lost this time.

And it’s good to have someone there because he’s sad, two of his best friends in the village are leaving and everyone is there to see them go. It’s weird, he thinks, it’s almost like people want to make sure they’re gone.

They did something bad and they’re being punished like that but no one wants to explain him exactly what this horrible thing is. They’ve always been kind, the one with the red curls let him ride his horse now and then, the other one loved to play hide and seek with the other kids.

Not that Father ever allowed him to join them, of course, but he had been watching other kids between his chores.

“Father? I don’t get it, what did they do?”

“They’re committing a crime against the laws of nature, Tristan, one day you will understand.”

That’s enough for him, everyone always said his father was a righteous man and a valiant knight, he believes him. After all adults know better, don’t they? And even if it’s sad knowing he’ll not get more rides on old Bessa’s back all gets better when dad starts patting his head.

The touch of his father’s hand on his head is so nice, the sensation of his fingers between his short hair so reassuring…

Until it’s not.

He can’t breathe underwater, he’s not a zora, but his head is stuck under the surface while his nails dig marks in the rudimentary leather cuffs that prevent him from fighting back. Pain, pain, his lungs are on fire and he can’t think straight but this is not something he can fight back, it’s no monster or bandit, and even when he starts thinking he’ll die Tristan keeps repeating to himself _ it’s better me than her _ like a mantra.

It’s the only thing that keeps him together.

His head is pulled out and he’s finally allowed to breathe but there’s no relief between the coughs as his hair is violently yanked back. Father can be terrifying when angry and this time he truly did something horrible, didn’t he? He can’t exactly remember what but-

“Look at you, you are the reason Hylia cursed this family and took my wife away.” Mom fell from the little cliff in front of the house because a goat pushed her, he’s quite sure Hylia would never take the form of a filthy animal, but father seems convinced it’s his fault now. Things are easier when you have someone to blame for your misfortune, that’s what someone said… it’s bad when you’re the one being punished, thought. “You and the miller’s son, disgusting!”

Right, him and Olmo did something bad, he can’t quite remember what, something against Hylia’s will, but it doesn’t matter. He’s sorry, he’s really sorry, he won’t disappoint again even if he wants to cry because Olmo is being sent to another village now and Tristan already doesn’t have many friends. It’s heartbreaking.

There’s no time to be sad, thought, because father is already pulling his head down again and his lungs fill with water once more. Oh, Hylia, he’s going to die, isn’t he? He can’t breathe, oh goddesses he can’t breathe and he’s so scared, he doesn’t even have anything or anyone waiting for him on the other side because mom went to Hylia while a sinner like him will have his soul thrown to demons.

He’s screaming with air he shouldn’t have in his lungs when someone pulls him back and suddenly he’s there with his sister, they’re both hiding in the stable and she just saved him. She always did. To think he was supposed to be the good brother.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…” There’s no point in apologizing to her, she’s always been kind and since mom died Aryll has been one of the few things keeping him together. Olmo was the other but he’s gone now, what did they do to deserve this? It’s like his whole being is refusing to remember so it must have been something horrible.

It would also explain why the other villagers look at him like he was a moblin.

“I’m so sorry, I can’t help it. I’m… something is wrong with me.”

Gentle arms wrap around him and she pulls him for a hug. Aryll is just a kid, she understands even less than Tristan what father is angry about, but she’s there… and that’s enough for now.

“Oh, Tri… If there’s anything wrong with anyone then it’s wrong with father. Look at me…” He’s so ashamed of himself he cannot even meet his sister’s gentle gaze. If she keeps being so nice to him he’ll drag her down too, he can take the hits and the pain but there’s no way he’ll ever forgive himself if his cursed existence hurts her of all people “Look. At. Me.”

She forces him to lift his head enough to meet her beautiful blue eyes and he can’t hold back anymore, he starts sobbing and crying and it’s nasty because his hair is still wet and his nose full of snot but Aryll is not backing away. She even slips her fingers between his hair, gently caressing his head, it’s a way more welcomed touch than father’s. He’s only thirteen, he needs things like this.

“I love you, no matter what others say.”

“I love you too.”

And he truly means it. At least this is right, loving a sibling is right and as long as they have each other. He can live with that, he has to.

“Pack your things.” He jumps on his seat, he’s now at the table with the family and they’re having dinner. There… isn’t much to pack, really, he has an accordion he’s no longer allowed to play because Olmo is the one who gifted it to him and he has some clothes, that’s all. And why should he pa- “You’re leaving Hateno tomorrow morning, you’re going to serve under Persivell the Courageous.”

Wait. No. No… he heard things about him, ‘the brute’ or ‘the devious’ would be more appropriate names. Oh, Hylia, father is kicking him out. Father is sending him to someone who will ‘fix’ him. He doesn’t want to go, perhaps he can escape, perhaps he can run in the forest and live in isolation- a quick glance to his sister who looks as terrified as him is enough to tell him what he has to do.

“As you wish, father.”

That night he and Aryll talk, he tells her to blame him for anything that will eventually go wrong at home, it’ll be safer for her to embrace her father’s hatred no matter what she has to say or how much she’ll have to lie. They cry together, they pray Hylia even if he’s sure she must hate him too and he falls asleep between her arms. That warmt, that love, at least that is something he doesn’t have to be ashamed of.

—

Waking up Link was left with a sense of dread he couldn’t quite understand, his dream was already fading in his memory as he unconsciously tried to push any memory away but a feeling of guilt and shame lingered. And while he could understand the guilt, it had to be about choosing to live his life as a zora out of selfishness, the shame made no sense: despite everything he had been a good knight, he always worked as hard as possible and… no, it made no sense.

He didn’t need any of that, whatever it had been about. He just wanted to toss everything away and just stay between his brother’s arms a little longer, who knew Sidon could be so soft and…

Wait.

He literally jumped off the prince’s lap, hitting the table in his attempt to escape and almost crashing on the floor, the only thing that managed to keep him in place were the hands Sidon suddenly placed on his hips forcing him to sit down.

They both stood there in silence for a moment, staring at each other like any sudden movement could startle the other, Link was now sitting on the table in front of the prince fighting his need to get free. Being held always made him feel the need to struggle, get free, and while he didn’t mind being touched in general Sidon’s palms keeping him anchored to the wooden surface felt like burning coal against his skin.

He didn’t like how awkwardly distracting the whole thing was but he promised himself not to hurt Sidon ever, no matter the unpleasantness of the situation. Especially after finding out… Oh, sweet Hylia, how was he going to fix that?

Link’s fins deflated as he looked at his friend. If the mask had a reason to be in his possession, if it was going to be lost once its purpose had been fulfilled… if he had to be his hylian self once more he had no choice but to leave permanently. How? He… he was going to figure something out. 

“I have… questions for you.”

Of course he did, Link couldn’t blame him. His tail wiggled nervously as he acknowledged the request with a nod.

“Why did you lie to me about sign language?”

‘_ You seemed… really happy to teach me.’ _

It was partially true, it was one of the reasons, Link had been unable to say no to the shark’s stupid, adorable enthusiasm. How was anyone supposed to deny Sidon little things like that? Yes, it put his plans of living blissful solitude to an end but it was a small price to pay to be a good brother, right?

“Is that… truly the reason?”

He raised his hands to give a positive answer then dropped them, repeating the gesture multiple times trying to find the right words. Link knew he was about to offer more lies to his friend and at least he could concede a little truth.

‘_ I don’t want to talk with people. It’s easier if they think I don’t know how to use sign language.’ _

Not saying the reason behind that wasn’t a lie, he was just omitting unnecessary details… right?

“But talking with me was okay?”

A pause as he felt his head tail burn, Sidon’s eyes wandered in its direction too before returning his attention to him.

‘_ Too many people for too long is… _ ’ the eel shook his hand, like trying to find the correct sign. He had never been fluent with words but now it felt somehow even more difficult _ ‘suffocating. But you’re… good company.’ _

The prince beamed in his direction, golden eyes shining with undeserved affection as the grip on his hips tightened. Link bit his lower lip resisting the urge to tell him to keep his hands away and raised his arms once again.

_ ‘Because we’re friends, right?’ _

“Of course we are! With all respect, I don’t think I’d-” Sidon lowered his gaze on Link’s hips and focused on his hands for a moment, he tilted his head in confusion realizing the prince’s pupils were dilating a little. That wasn’t a reaction he was familiar with, was it how zoras looked like when they were thinking too much “I admit if I didn’t consider you a close friend I wouldn’t be able to keep my hands on you like this.” His voice lowered as he turned his head “I honestly wouldn’t anyway but I have this strong feeling if I don’t keep you here now I’ll probably not see you again…”

That was a bold admission and, Link had to admit it, probably true. Oh, what did he do to deserve such a good man as best friend? He was there ruining the prince’s life and in the meanwhile Sidon couldn’t help but making his days brighter the few times they still crossed their paths.

“Mh…” 

He leant forward, placing both hands against the other’s muscular arms and trying to offer a bit of comfort. 

“And we need to talk about… earlier.”

Right… Link almost hissed at the thought, a sense of suffocation returning as he remembered what brought them in that position to begin with.

“I’m attracted to men.” every muscle in the eel’s body tensed up, his nails dangerously pressed against the other’s red skin and he felt the urge to flee. What if anyone outside heard such a stupid declaration? People were going to chase them away and that was the best hypothesis “And… that’s fine. That’s normal, my normal.”

That was a bold statement and Link sighed shaking his head, there was nothing normal in the way Sidon felt, especially considering who he claimed to be in love with. He was the Hero of Hyrule, that was true, but the prince never cared about his status… so why? ‘Link’ was one of the most boring people of the guard, inside the castle he only dedicated himself to follow his schedule and work for Zelda. And even before he just… survived. He was absolutely attached to his duties, no matter how much he actually enjoyed traveling and seeing the world.

Hell, for the longest time he snuck on sleeping hinoxes to steal knight and royal equipment because fighting with whatever he could scavenge seemed unappropriate for the ‘Chosen One’, he only gave up because tracking them after every blood moon was taking too much time.

How… how could a concentration of energy and positivity like Sidon see anything in that?

“I want you to know in zora culture there’s no shame in this.” Link’s head fin straightened as he searched around the room in confusion, almost expecting someone to jump out from somewhere and laugh at him for believing such a blatant lie. “I am still expected to produce a child during my lifetime but that’s… for unrelated reasons. I now know Hylians haven’t always been really accepting but even that is in the past now.”

The yellow zora could only reply with the most skeptical glare. He knew some of his men used to be out in the open, but he couldn’t imagine any other reason beside them using their title to protect themselves. Then again, he never asked anything about that, it was irrelevant to him anyway.

“That takes us to my next questions. Does my nature anger you?”

What?

_ ‘Of course not.’ _

If anyone was to blame was Link himself, certainly not Sidon!

“Okay. Do I disgust you?”

His hands never moved faster and with more emphasis.

_ ‘No! Never!’ _

“Good. So I’m not the problem, am I? You reacted like that earlier because you were… worried for me?”

He slowly replied with a nod, worried was an understatement but at least it served well enough to pass the message.

“My dear, I am really touched but I assure you I am and I will be perfectly fine. My father and some of my friends already know-”

Link’s eyes grew as wide as saucers. Dorephan knew? And he did nothing about his son’s situation? How could he care so little about Sidon’s future? He could… he would…

“Hey… you’re shaking again. Listen, I assure you I am fine, the worst I experienced was being rejected by my first crush when I still was a small fry… and that was only because my friend had no interest in either men or women.”

The yellow zora swallowed nervously even if his mouth felt incredibly dry, Sidon already went as far as confessing at someone and that was… bad. Really bad. Still, he wanted to believe him when he said things were okay, perhaps zoras were just… that different. Link raised his hands once, twice, each time he lowered them in defeat trying to express how he felt about the whole situation. Could he even express his desperate need to hear Sidon admit it was all part of an elaborate and cruel joke?

_ ‘If you promise me you will be fine… then I will try not to worry.’ _

It wasn’t true but he was lucky enough to know about Sidon’s feelings and to have a way not to be seen again, he was going to do the right thing. For him.

“I promise.”

The shark’s broad smile made at this declaration made his heart skip a beat, probably a natural response of a survival oriented person in front of a dangerous wall of white sharp teeth.That stupid, silly man, why did he have to be so happy? Did he think he was helping him somehow?

_ ‘I just don’t get it…’ _

“Mh?”

_ ‘Why him?’ _

“Oh…”

Sidon’s hands finally left his sides as the red zora flushed and awkwardly tried to straighten his cravat. Oh… oh sweet Hylia, Sidon was literally half covered in that disgusting slime of his and he was only spreading it further with his movements. He had never been happier to own a pond behind his house, the prince definitely needed a good clean up.

“He’s… a good man.”

He blinked. Now that was a really low bar…

“And he’s strong and proud. you should see him fight. I had the honor, once, and it was...breathtaking. He’s graceful but lethal, he’s small but incredibly strong and when you see him in battle it’s not just looking at a warrior, it’s… admiring a force of nature at work.”

Oh… oh it was a hero crush! That was.... better. Some men had that kind of interest in him while training, that was something that was going to pass at some point.

“But that’s just one part of it, of course…”

Link’s tail tensed once more as the prince let out a dreamy sigh with eyes half closed.

“He’s kind. And so incredibly gentle at times… when you see him in battle he’s like a shiny star, something that could burn you if you step too close, but it’s when things are calm that you can see his true beauty. He’s no longer a blinding light, he’s a comforting gem cut from luminous stone to gently brighten your way.

To see him, to truly see him, you need to catch him around kids. He’s so kind with them, he smiles and Hylia is my witness his is a smile worth fighting for. So rare yet so beautiful. The first time I heard him chuckle it was around this child named Tumbo and it was the exact moment I realized I wanted to know him better-”

Sidon stirred on the little seat but Link didn’t move a single muscle, it was probably a good thing the prince was too embarrassed to look at him right now to notice the way the other’s claws dig in the table and how he looked like a deer who just spotted a hunter.

“It’s been five years since he left to serve under his queen and while I appreciate his devotion there has been no day I didn’t spend hoping to be around him. To see him smile, to let him know I noticed how his ears twitch whenever he sees anything he likes no matter how indifferent he tries to appear, to hear him laugh filled with mirth.” Another sigh “Oh to be the source of his joy...”

The shark’s attention went to the letters, the written disaster that indirectly caused the current situation. He was probably still upset about them but there was little Link could do right now without exposing the truth.

“There’s nothing I wouldn’t give to see him once more, at least to ask him if he really intended his farewell words or if it was a desperate attempt to keep us safe in... some convoluted way. But I don’t yet know how to venture outside Hyrule so… oh, I’m making you uneasy once more, am I not? Pardon me, friend, I haven’t really told anyone yet and I was getting carried away.”

Link shook his head, trying to make sense of what he had just heard, to process the way Sidon didn’t hesitate to gush about him. That made no sense, they know each other so little…

“Still, I hope this was enough for you to understand I’m… absolutely serious about this. It’s not mere attraction and I am proud to say my heart belongs to the kind soul who saved us all. Can you accept me knowing that?”

While he felt numb and confused he still managed to raise his hands one last time to sign one of the few things that would always stand true.

_ ‘I will always accept you, you are my dearest friend.’ _

After spelling out those words Link reached forward wrapping his arms around the zora’s head and pulling him closer in one of the few gestures of affection he was truly familiar with thanks to Zelda. He bumped their crests together in what he could only assume was the zora equivalent of touching each other’s forehead and closed his eyes, gently snuggling against him and feeling both so incredibly guilty and… weird.

Lulu was Sidon’s friend, that was good, Link was Sidon’s brother and that had to be the truth as well. Giving it time the prince’s feelings would change or fade away and… and… all of this only confirmed him how important it was for ‘Link’ not to return, ever. He was feeling so stupid right now, repeating himself things like that over and over, but it felt incredibly important for him to keep that in mind.

It was only after a good minute of gentle nuzzling that he realized something was off: Sidon wasn’t breathing. As soon as he opened his eyes he realized the prince’s pupils were completely dilated, his eyes more akin to dark puddles than the usual golden gems. Uh… that wasn’t a reaction he was familiar with. Blue scales meant embarrass, the same ones turned to give him a pale color meant shock but… that thing with the eyes? He had never really seen it.

As soon as he tried to pull back and put some distance between them Sidon moved forward following him and, honestly, starting the Hylian a bit. What the…

“Ah?”

His rough attempt at a vocalization seemed enough to snap the other out of… whatever that was, Sidon laughed nervously before jumping on his feet and taking some steps away.

“Please don’t do that again.”

Okay so he was… offended by it? Wide pupils meant offense? But then why was Sidon trying not to… you know what? No more questions for the day, both had enough awkward moments for the day.

“I… uh… I should probably get ready to go home. I promised my father I’d be back in three days but the path is long and I will probably barely make it in time considering how long I… I mean, it’s almost night. I should leave before it gets completely dark”

_ ‘If you don’t mind to take a different route I can take you home in eight hours, you can leave tomorrow morning and you will still spare time.’ _

“Truly? But how?”

_ ‘We need to climb a fall and the terrain isn’t the best for the first part but once we reach L a n a y r u Promenade we can swim for the most part. Pass the East Gate, pass R a b i a Plain and you’re in the Wetlands’ _

It was dangerous crossing the plain, Lunch was there after all and if they picked that path he definitely needed to teleport back near Hateno to pick his horse but… he could do that for Sidon. It wasn’t like anyone was waiting for him anyway.

“What about your steed?”  
_  
_ _ ‘I will come pick my wife later, I’m incredibly efficient at traveling.’ _

“Well… I do trust you, then. I think I will go search for a place where to get us some fish and then… rest, if you don’t mind. My spine is killing me after sitting for so long and I could use a bit of water, my scales are dryer than Gerudo Desert in some points.”

_‘Oh, please. You have no idea how bad Gerudo Desert can be until you’re there.’_

“I guess b- wait, you’ve been there?”

Adventure talks were way easier than anything else they discussed so far, he actually wanted to lock out of his memory how adoring the prince sounded a moment ago and chatting about badass shit he did was perfect.

_‘Only to K a r a K a r a Bazaar. They have oasis in the middle.’_

“That’s impressive but why?”

_‘Curiosity’_

And to get his horse red dye, of course. He was a simple man with simple priorities…

“Cur… Ah, you’re a marvel, friend. I’ll be in your hands, then.”

Link replied with a smug grin and snapping the finger in his direction, he was definitely going to keep Sidon safe and get him home in time. And… and…

_ ‘One last thing.’ _

“Mh?”

_ ‘I apologize for… all of this.’ _

“Please, don’t, You only reacted out of worry and-”

_ ‘I was born here. In this village.’ _

Sidon slammed his mouth shut, suddenly overly attentive. It… wasn’t going to be a telling information, no one remembered about him and his family in Hateno beside that they were people who moved to the castle, but he owed him a bit of truth.

‘_ But I don’t have a good memory. And I forgot until I heard that stupid song last night, I’ve been… a bit too emotional since then. I’m not trying to make excuses here, just… this is why I overreacted.’ _

“I… I see. Again, there’s…it’s okay.”

_ ‘It won’t happen again.’ _

He felt the prince’s touch against his shoulder and he found himself at the receiving end of another of his loving smiles.

“I don’t mind if anything like this happens again: we learnt things about each other today and that brought us a bit closer. I apologize if I’m being too bold here but I want to hope this made us better friends, at least a little.”

Oh, no, he didn’t mind at all. He actually quite enjoyed the thought, Link really liked Sidon. As friend. Only as friend and brother. Goddesses, he couldn’t help but feel confused whenever he thought about the prince’s feelings because they were wrong, so wrong, yet he failed at being angry with him for that.

Was he failing him again by being so accepting? Link bit his lips once more, sharp teeth almost puncturing the delicate white skin, and shook his head. He needed time to process everything and then he’d decide what to do, until then he was probably better locking everything out.

_ ‘I guess. You go and rest outside, I need to stay alone for a bit and I’ll go get us some fish. You make sure you have enough energy for tomorrow.’ _

“But…”

Link jumped off the table with a huff, walking behind Sidon and pushing him outside. He needed a good swim on his own and the prince needed to relax his back after sitting for way too long, there was no fighting that. 

Goddesses, it was comical to watch him squirm to pass through the miniature door and attempt to protest but nothing could beat his reaction after he accepted his fate and let himself fall into the pond. He… literally bolted out of the water, both hands pressed against his gills, with an expression of pure shock on his face.

He snickered, was the water too cold for his majesty?

_ ‘What was that?’ _

No reply as the prince seemed to take his time to process his thoughts, eyes darting between the pond and the other zora as his mouth kept opening and closing. He could literally see gears turning in his head and he clearly saw anger, betrayal and shock alternating each other on his face....

Then, right as Link was starting to worry, Sidon finally decided to speak.

“I apologize for my reaction, I…” His eyes darted around for a moment and he suddenly pointed his finger toward Chestnut who lazily neighed at him “Him! Her! I… uh… suspect she used this pond to… how do hylians call them? Toilet.”

Link snorted, a sound that always managed to be weird considering as zora he had no nose, and then started laughing. That was the problem? Goddess, Sidon seemed so hurt, so upset for a moment, and it was all due to horse pee? It was weird that she went out of her way for that and it was certainly nasty to breathe urine but… 

_ ‘You…’ _ his hands were shaking with laughter and somehow how unamused the prince seemed made things funnier to him _ ‘You go in the river in Hateno, I’ll get you there later.’ _

Still no smiles from Sidon, only incredulous bitterness, did he truly dislike horses so much? If his sudden grimace was of any indication… yes. He saw him attempt to squeeze more water out of his gills, walk back and forth while frowning and shaking his head.

“No, it can’t be…”

His gaze moved on Link and the golden zora felt almost intimidated by the intensity of that glare, he was furious and there was no denying that. Perhaps leaving Chestnut unattended had been a bad idea.

_ ‘I’m sorry’ _

“Oh, you better be.”

That took him by surprise but Sidon didn’t give him time to elaborate things further before walking away without even looking in his direction.

“I will be in Hateno.”

That had been the weirdest exchange since they met and it was hard to believe it all occurred because his horse decided to drink and pee in the same spot. Oh, well, the world wasn’t going to end for that. 

He just needed to find great fish for dinner and that was probably going to fix everything, food always made things better.

\- - -

It didn’t get better.

Sidon muttered an apology, something on the lines of ‘I am sorry it was quite unbecoming of me’ but it didn’t feel sincere and his mood didn’t improve. He demanded Link to join him in the water behind the cooking spots but otherwise spent the night in silence, barely touching his fish despite the other’s insistence.

They left the village at dawn, leaving only the horse and Link’s belongings behind, and the prince didn’t say a single word the whole time, not when Link tried to show him the marvels of the Promenade’s ruins nor when they crossed the lovely lake where countless deer lived in the Plain.

Any attempt to ask what was wrong was dismissed or Sidon attributed it to ‘having weird ideas in his mind’ or ‘I can’t get over breathing in your horse’s urinal’. It still didn’t feel genuine enough but what else could he do?

They parted in the wetlands with few words and the knight was alone once more, still confused by the whole situation. If he wanted to believe him, and being honest it wasn’t that easy right now, horses were a bigger problem than he thought.

Chestnut was probably now in Sidon’s blacklist now, that wasn’t going to cut it..

Now… knowing his friend wanted to get closer to horses to impress him of all people didn’t make Link too eager to do anything about it but… horses were just too good to let his brother, definitely brother, live in fear.

He knew what had to be done, he needed to find Sidon his own horse.

And he knew where to get one.

\- - -

More than one person greeted Sidon as soon as he set foot in the Domain but he barely greeted them, lacking his usual energy and each time trying to excuse himself saying he was exhausted after a long day of march. 

Oh, he hated lying to his people but he had… things in his mind. Troubling thoughts that couldn’t stop bothering him and when after an afternoon spent dodging people he appeared in his father’s private pool he was relieved to find the King already waiting for him.

“So… “ he could see the top of the giant blue head appear from under the surface “What is troubling my son so much I had to cancel my dinner with Muzu tonight? We were going to discuss if we wanted to reduce taxes for the underwater caves hit by that weird mold outbreak, it was going to be so romantic....”

Dorephan’s attempt at humor didn’t pass unnoticed but Sidon didn’t feelin the right mood to appreciate it. With a sigh he entered in water, floating stomach up for a long moment before finally letting his frustration out.

“I’m a shark, dad.”  
  
Dorephan blinked raising one giant arm out of the pool and leaning it against its border, using it as support for his head.

“No…”

Sidon used his tail to give himself a kick in the water, turning around to face his father. He felt so… he didn’t even know how he felt. Angry, stupid, a mix of both...

“I’m also a zora.”

The king covered his mouth with an unnecessarily loud gasp.

“Sweet Hylia… too much information at once, Sidon.”

The prince frowned raising both hands in the air.

“Dad I know you’re trying to be funny but it’s not the moment! I… Uhm… I am also in love with the hero of Hyrule.”

Oh, wow, finally saying it to his dad made him already feel much better. Then again, he knew Dorephan probably suspect-

“Please, Sidon, can you start telling me something I don’t know so I can figure out how to help you?”

-of course he knew.

“So… I’m a zora. But I’m a shark. The point is… I can’t smell anything out of water BUT-” He lifted his index “When I’m in it my gills are sharp as fuck.”

“Sid, Language!”

“Thegoldenzorasmellslikelink.”

Both men stood there in silence for a long moment then Sidon jumped out of water to sit near his dad’s arm.

“I noticed it other times before but I thought it was merely my head playing tricks on me but no. Link has this little pond behind his home and I entered it while covered in Lulu’s slime”

“You were covered in what now?”

“He’s an eel, he’s always covered in this protective goo. And before you get the wrong idea, we just hugged. I know it’s not appropriate between zora but he’s so hylian… he acts like a hylian, he doesn’t mind contact and oh I know I’ve been indecent in accepting that but-”

“Sidon, calm down and breathe. You’re an adult and I’m not going to judge you for a hug.”

He shivered leaning against his father, of course he wasn’t going to point fingers there but Sidon was still fully aware of how inappropriate his behaviour had been.

“It makes no sense, dad. Think about it: people say he appeared shortly after Link went missing, knows more about hylian than zora culture and now… there’s that. I… I just don’t understand. I felt they were incredibly similar on occasion before but… now I feel it’s him. But then why-” he snarled “Why would he lie to us like this? To me? I opened my heart in front of him, told him how much I love the hero of Hyrule and he just… nothing!”

Dorephan hummed at his side, clearly not wanting to interrupt but also wanting Sidon to know he had his attention.

“And it hurts me. Even because I don’t know if it’s true or it’s just my mind playing tricks on me or not. And if he’s truly that zora, Hylia only knows how, it just… it’s not fair. Why. Wouldn’t. He. Talk?”

The shark felt all energies leave his body, was he going insane? No one ever heard of magic strong enough to change one person’s species, he knew the Sheikah could magically disguise themselves but it was never more than a mask, here he was considering a whole body transformation.

“Sidon… I don’t know if you’re right or not but I want you to consider one thing. If that is Link there could be countless reasons on why he’s not telling us anything yet but don’t forget who you’re talking about. If Zelda’s letters and our knowledge of the hero are anything to go by, he's a man who fights his battles alone even when he shouldn’t.”

The giant zora slipped completely in the water, gently nuzzling his son with a large cheek.

“And if we must consider such unlikely scenario we cannot ignore the fact he could be under a curse which may also prevent him to speak about it.”

Oh. Oh! Of course!

“That being said, I don’t know how much hope you should put in this. I know you miss him, dear, as so do I but I’d rather not see you chase illusions”

Sidon closed his eyes, he knew it was a wild idea to begin with but… it was either that or finding a way to the Great Beyond, whatever that meant, and picking a random direction to travel. 

He… he probably needed to discuss with Zelda. Just to give her Link’s letter, of course, totally not to ask if she knew anything about places outside Hyrule

“What am I supposed to do?”

The king seemed to consider his options for a moment then offered his son the largest smile.

“Well, if I was you I’d try to stay close to our new friend and…” He grinned with a conspiratory tone “... I think I’d like to meet him. And I know how you can lure him in the Domain.”

\- - - 

The hunt for the giant horse lasted almost a week, mostly because while reaching Taobab Grassland had been a joke Link’s body truly hated the dry climate of the place and the sand slowed him down terribly.

He climbed the giant trees trying to paraglide on the beast’s back without success, he tried to lure it with food only to find himself in the middle of a stampede when the other horses charged against him, and even when he tried to take advantage of another animal’s speed to jump on the other’s back… he found himself on a creature with a worse temperament than Lunch who ignored any command and took him to the lynel guarding the area.

Two golden Lynels, one electric wizzrobe and an infinity of keese killed later he finally got his chance by pure luck when the bokoblins of Darybon decided to raid the part where the wild horses peacefully grazed, probably hoping to add more animals to their little army.

Link wasn’t even trying to get on the giant beast’s back at the moment, he was sitting on the top of one of the trees enjoying some seafood paella when he noticed the giant horse run in his direction. With immense pain he threw his food away, not without shedding a couple of tears, and jumped down. Not even paragliding, there wasn’t enough time, Link simply fell from the tree landing full weight on the giant horse’s back. He heard the horse’s loud protest, he felt it sped up but for a long moment it was just him, his fingers holding to the animal’s mane and the painful cries of his probably broken hip.

Sweet hylia, that hurt so much.

Mipha’s boon activated almost immediately, of course, but in his zora form the healing process was much slower so while he could feel his body’s condition improve during the wild ride every bump and jump was still a nightmare to deal with. 

In its furious run Link barely noticed when they crossed Oseira, nor when the horse passed the wetlands in the southern part, he managed to pay attention to his surroundings when a familiar figure at the Archery Camp started yelling with enthusiasm.

“You did it, you magnificent bastard, you found the giant horse! Come here, I want to see it!”

Wonderful, he was going to give Straia an autograph and let him take a picture with the giant horse when he wasn’t too busy holding on its mane for dear life. Hell, near Harfin Valley the horse almost managed to throw him down while running on the main street and he blessed his wild mare for being an untamable devil who trained him well before.

And after what felt like an eternity he was near Highland Stable. it took every fiber of his being to force the beast to approach the settlement and he was able to force him to calm down because Blynne, Phanna AND Beedle rushed to his help with ropes.

He almost had a heart attack when the wandering merchant took a good look at his hip and gasped, noticing his slate, and he had to admit his gratitude when after quickly covering it the other seemed kind enough to pretend he saw nothing.

“Are you sure you want to register… this one?”

_ ‘Y e s.’ _

He was worried, how was he supposed to give it to someone already afraid of horses? He… he was the goddarn hero of Hyrule, slayer of ganon and owner of the scariest horse of them all, Lunch. He was going to find a way.

“Uh… okay. So, what name should we-”

_ ‘D i n n e r. That’s what it’s going to become if he doesn’t start obeying me and he better remember it.’ _

“Oh, dear, are you sure?”

Link frowned before pushing on the counter a silver rupee.

_ ‘D i n n e r’ _

“What a wonderful name!”

\- - - 

Returning to Rabia Plain had been another long, long adventure, it took Link another whole week because the big black idiot couldn’t follow his directions, he would run around or rush in the middle of monster camps before attempting to escape. 

It had been a battle and for once he felt.. defeated. His hip still hurt, he was upset because either he ate on the saddle or Dinner took it as an invitation to flee and he had no idea of how he was going to keep the animal there.

That until his angel decided to appear.

Noticing her companion in clear distress Lunch charged in full force. One wouldn’t expect a mare to slam against a stallion twice her size but as crazy as Link’s girl could be she still protected her tiny fish.

Link almost stepped in to keep them apart before realizing Dinner was as shocked as he was. He tried to stomp the ground to intimidate her only to have a high pitched neigh in response followed by her hooves striking the grass below violently.

With ears flattened against her back and gaping mouth that let her teeth show she snapped multiple times at the stallion, pushing him back whenever he tried to move. When he tried to turn to run away he only found chestnut there, lazily wagging her tail and blocking its path.

On Dinner’s back Link could only admire in silence as, somehow, his favorite mare managed to show her dominance. With a beast larger than him. It took them almost an hour, he had been fully alert the whole time being ready to jump down and step between them, but in the end the black stallion seemed to accept he was no longer the leader of the herd, not there.

And he was now under a mare who was definitely going to follow him and stomp him down if he tried to hurt her tiny yellow blob or disobey.

He knew Lunch was the perfect horse but he never imagined she would be this good.

That was it! Link squealed with delight, he could bring Sidon to Dinner as long as Lunch was nearby! It was a dangerous move, yes, but the zora disliked horses and how many times did he even interact with his mare in the past? He could make it work.

\- - - 

_ ‘You’re back!’ _

It was the first time Link greeted Sidon first since they started interacting near his little wooden hut but for once he had been eager to see the zora Prince. He had a present for him, a _ big _ one, and yes, perhaps by hylian standards gifting a horse was considered a proposal but… hey, they were friends and he was doing this because Sidon specifically asked him for help.

“I… yes I am, my friend, I’m back. I’m sorry I didn’t pay you a visit lately but-”

‘_ Come with me _’

Link’s tail was wagging around with delight as the zora tossed his tools away, learning how to properly carve a wooden bowl could wait. He spent almost a week training the giant horse and as long as his favorite mare was there he would obey like a little sheep, he was confident introducing Sidon to the animal now and-

“Uh... of course. But before we go anywhere I’d.... I am here because I’d like to request your help. Again. I suppose.”

Okay, the fact Sidon needed help explained his apparent awkwardness, Dinner could wait a bit longer. Link offered the red zora a warm smile before sitting down once more.

“Thank you. So… we made an interesting discovery in the city and we could use someone with experience in… exploring.”

That got his full attention immediately, it wasn’t a small thing like looking for ‘Link’ or helping with horses if the Domain was involved as a whole.

“Most of the Domain is built underwater.” Wait, really? “And there is a large system of dry or submerged caves connecting various portions of the city. During the past months we had problems in the whole area under Ruto’s Precipice, annoying black mold covering the walls faster than we can clean it… but while trying to find the source of the outbreak we also found something unique. Behind a large stone carving that needed extensive cleaning we found a door.”

That… was underwhelming. That… wasn’t really something Link had any experience with, he had no idea how he could even offer any kind of support on that. And doors…

_ ‘What was behind it?’ _

“We don’t know!” Well, at least some of Sidon’s usual energy seemed to be back now “We haven’t been able to open it and even our sharpest tools can’t make a single dent in the stone but- we can tell the mold is creeping out from it but we know nothing. It’s just… there, clearly not zora architecture and in one of our air bubbles in the undercity.”

_ ‘Tell me more’ _

“I’m honestly just interested in asking the opinion of an expert and you clearly are a zora who has traveled the world. Gerudo Desert, ah! What a madman. Perhaps you could help with our mold issue?”

Wasn’t that peachy? Fate set him up to fight Ganon, once, maybe now it decided he was going to enjoy the next step of his career as fungi exterminator. Oh, wait....

_ ‘Does that mean I have to-’ _

“Come in the Domain? I’m afraid so but I would really, really appreciate your help.” Okay, he couldn’t say no to Sidon’s puppy face, he was going to check whatever was there and then run back to his corner “And my father would truly love to meet such a resourceful zora. Would you please-”

_ ‘Cut the cuteness, I’m coming. I’m not staying in the city but I’m going to check the situation with you’ _

Sidon’s smile grew wider and he even did a little victory dance on the spot, Link knew he was walking straight into a trap now. Okay, he just had to be extra careful and play dumb, everything was going to be fine.

_ ‘Now… come with me, I have a present for you.’ _

“Truly?”

‘_ Truly’. _

Their swim was short and the climb that followed manageable even if a bit annoying. Link didn’t hesitate to assist Sidon whenever it was needed and in a moment they were there. Rabia Plain, the place where Sidon only sulked last time they had been there together but now…

“There are so many animals here.”

He grinned widely with pride before loudly clicking his tongue, in a moment his three horses were already galloping in their direction and he savoured every single second of Sidon’s reaction. 

The initial horror.

The realization.

The giant zora literally stepping behind him for protection as soon as the animals were close enough.

That had been priceless. 

“Sweet Hylia you found a horse my size… Oh, no, that’s your gift, isn’t it?”

Link snickered turning his body enough to pat Sidon’s stomach, it was hard not to laugh in his face.

“I am incredibly grateful but… oh.” He saw his jaw drop as he finally stopped studying Lunch and Link’s stomach clenched with sudden anxiety. Had he been too bold in taking her there? Did he recognize his mount? “Of course you are…” the prince covered his eyes for a moment before offering Link a broad grin “You are a true horse maniac! Did you dye her mane? That’s more than I expected even from you.”

Link silently thanked the whole known pantheon before turning again to look at his best friend.

_ ‘I’ll work hard to make you a Horse maniac too.’ _

“I don’t see that happening anytime soon.”

_ ‘Well, now you have your own companion, you two just need to learn how to get along.’ _

“I had no idea you hated me so much, my friend.”

_ ‘Don’t be ridiculous, I’m doing this because I like you.’ _

Sidon’s smile at his reply made him feel warm once more. If he had to be completely honest, he was glad he found the mask: as Link he couldn’t be around Sidon anymore, between duties toward his land and the prince himself there was no way ‘Link’ was ever returning to Hyrule.

As Lulu though? He knew he wanted to enjoy what he could get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Link's mood being: 'I am so not into Sidon but also all he needs to do is look at me and I'll follow him into any crazy adventure' (I gotta thank Ibijau for summarizing this perfectly)


	8. Everything was going so well...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so, fair warning here: mild horror elements ahead. 
> 
> Plot is happening, mostly, and Link isn't really realizing Sidon is busy flirting with him. I apologize if the descriptions are a bit lacking, I tried my hardest but I'm not as fluent with words in english as I can be in italian. 
> 
> That being said, thank you everyone for sticking with me so far, I hope not to disappoint here.

“Please, I’m begging you my friend, you cannot visit the Domain _ naked _!”

_ ‘You just watch me, big boy.’ _

Link never failed to find amusement in zora’s bizarre set of rules when it came to decency: hylians had their fair share of weird stuff, he remembered especially hating high collars and fancy cravats, but zora… all seemed to be fair game as long as their necks were covered, even bracelets or anklets were optional.

And while he already accepted he had to cover himself a bit more if he was to step in the city, especially considering there were kids like Tumbo and Laruta around, he wasn’t going to tell Sidon yet, not until he was done_ teasing _.

_ ‘Why don’t you show me your support and take off your jewelry as well?’ _

The gasp and the sudden change of color of the prince as he covered his neck with both hands like Link just tried to bite it, the absolute embarrassment at the idea, the golden zora enjoyed every bit of his reaction.

“I… uh… I don’t think a man in my position could…” 

Link snickered loudly while reaching forward to pat the other’s shoulder over the decorative piece of armor. Oh, wait…

_ ‘A man in your position?' _

“uh… I haven’t told you yet, have I? I am the prince of our people.”

Part of Link wanted to offer an exaggerated reaction, throw hands in the air pretending he had never been around royalty, make Sidon blush even more but… he also remembered how privately zelda wasn’t afraid to admit she didn’t like to be treated differently only because of her title. And if the shark prince didn’t mention anything until now perhaps he felt the same.

Oh, well, at least he managed to avoid awkward ‘confessions’ about his status later in the domain or having to play dumb in front of other people, that’s what Link wanted the most.

_ ‘I guess that explains why you’re bigger than others. Big deal, you’re still a dork.’ _

At the shrug that followed he could see the shark relax. Good, he apparently picked the correct approach and probably spared the other some awkwardness down the line. He could feel all the nobles he met and his ancestors cringe at such inappropriate behavior but- hey, Lulu was his ‘persona’ now and that man was proudly weird.

“Still… I do have a fair amount of interested people around me-” That… Link didn’t like that, somehow, he didn’t like to think about people courting Sidon but it was probably only because the other’s confession still made him uneasy. _ Don’t think about it _ he repeated himself once more before returning his attention to the other “And I’m afraid I’d definitely send the wrong message if I decided to present myself without appropriate coverage.”

He rolled his eyes at Sidon’s words, he didn’t really needed to justify himself if he wanted to keep his clothes on, one thing was slight teasing the other stepping in uncomfortable terrain. Not to mention he felt like his mood soured as well in the last minute or so.

_ ‘Whatever. But don’t worry, man-’ _

He was going to surprise Sidon this time: he thought about clothes already and he finally managed to properly prepare a splendid snowcoat fur and-

“And listen- I don’t expect you to go now and find something elegant to wear but I came prepared.” Link blinked as the other reached for his satchel “I think it’s your size.”

The knight was speechless, in the prince’s hands there was an elegant silver collar that almost seemed made for him. The size was, from what he could tell, perfect, and despite being clearly created with more care than the standard circles of metal more people used it wasn’t too fancy for a warrior. there were few arches, the zora symbol on the back, a large sapphire on the front and that was all. Beautiful, he had to admit it.

_ ‘I cannot accept, it’s too much.’ _

“Friend, you gave me a legendary dragon scale, I don’t think a thousand of those could ever repay such a gift so- yes, you can accept.”

_ ‘But-’ _

“I insist.”

Nope, he couldn’t wear jewelry gifted by another man in public, never! Sidon wasn’t going to convince him with puppy eyes, his baby brother charm wasn’t going to win him any favor this time… and he probably knew that, this why he decided to opt for a gaze full of determination instead.

‘...’ Link moved his hands a couple of times, never really forming real words, and let out a loud sigh ‘_ F i n e _ ’ Thank you lizard brain for making his heart beat faster once more at the sight of Sidon’s teeth, he needed to tell the other to offer less of those broad smiles _ ‘But I’m not wearing it today.’ _

“But-”  
_  
_ _ ‘I will not come naked either, don’t worry. I accept your gift but let’s say I will wear it to a big occasion if needed, if I want to come meet your people’ _

“Our people.”

_ ‘your people. If I need to meet them I want to do it as myself. Look.’ _ Link hopped back to his shelter only to return pointing at his own neck, a pale blue scarf wrapped around it. He was extremely proud of how his work turned out, the fur itself was still incredibly soft, the skin didn’t stiffen at all and it felt like velvet against his skin and the color was still beautiful. A success.

“Oh. Oh, I see. That’s… beautiful, my friend.”

He sounded disappointed. Great, to think for once he actually wanted someone to compliment him, his horses barely paid his work any attention and Lunch even tried to bite it. Oh well…

_ ‘As I said I’m not rejecting your present. I will just keep it for something worth it. Like…’ _ He waved his hand once more ‘ _ Your wedding. I’ll put it for your big day, kid _.’ Perfect. That was the perfect occasion for such a thing, no one was going to think ill of him wearing Sidon’s gift if he was already promised to someone else.

“It’s a bit early to think about it but *ahem* if I have to be honest… when that day will I wouldn’t mind you to be the guest of honor.”

Aw, how lovely, Sidon cared about their friendship so much it was touching. To think they had known each other only for months. And people said it wasn’t easy to find true friends around the world. He just really, really needed to push aside the fact that the other was going to walk to the altar (or whatever the zora equivalent was) with a groom, not a bride.

Goddess, the simple thought gave him anxiety.

_ ‘The longer you take getting there the better, more time for me to find a good excuse not to wear that thing.’ _

“Oh, you little…”

Link chuckled sticking out his long, blue tongue in Sidon’s direction before reaching for his bag and securing a traveler’s claymore to his shoulders. Well, the whole neck issue was resolved, he had all the tools he needed to study the mold with him and he was ready to go.

The prince reached for him, large hands patting the eel’s head. It was… nice that Sidon was finally comfortable with small touches like that, it used to be a Zelda only thing but the knight welcomed it from him. If he was learning to consider him a brother as well… Link was going to love it.

“To the Domain?”

He took a deep breath looking up at his friend.

_ ‘To the Domain.’ _

\- - -

  


The whole path to Zora Domain had been absolutely uneventful, while monsters could somehow return even if there had been no blood moons in years no lizalfos could be seen around the main road. He felt proud of Sidon’s men, they were clearly keeping the place as safe as possible, and he had to admit he felt a bit silly carrying a large weapon for Sidon’s safety.

At least he didn’t feel too guilty for forcing his friend to walk as well just because he needed to carry his stuff and swimming wasn’t a great idea when you were transporting countless little bottles… Sidon took so much pride in showing him around, how well they organized the territory and it was pleasant to listen to him talk.

It was more unnerving actually stepping in the city, he could feel Dunma and Rivan’s eyes on him at the gates and holding his head up while keeping his eyes forward had been a true challenge. When other zora started to gather around him and the prince he almost jumped off the balcony to swim away, the only thing keeping him there being the fact he promised he’d help with their mold issue.

Goddess, why was he even so nervous? It wasn’t the first time he had been at the center of the attention considering he was the hero of Hyrule and the leader of all armed forces of Queen Zelda, yet he couldn’t help but feel uneasy. Months of solitude changed him a bit, uh?

Swallowing his feelings he kept walking just a few steps behind his friend in silence up the stairs, it was a relief when Bazz and another guard he couldn’t recognized stopped the crowd following them demanding some privacy and respect for the King.

And talking about Dorephan... wow, he was larger than he remembered. Link had to channel all his willpower not to bow in front of him like he always did and ended up strangling the belt of his bag instead while fighting the urge to behave properly.

That wasn’t something ‘Lulu’ would do and he had to keep that in mind, there were still people around him and behaviors typical of Link weren’t an option.

“Oh, you must be the young man my son always talks about.” The king’s cheerful and welcoming tone immediately managed to relax him a little. He wasn’t upset for the lack of respect, good, while Dorephan mentioned before Link could be less formal around him he never truly expected he’d have the courage to do so “Quite the curious visitor, aren’t you?”

Muzu was staring at him from the king’s side and Link could feel HIS eyes piercing his skin but… he was going to survive that.

“Let me take a good look at you, son.” The giant zora offered his open hand and after a bit of hesitation Link climbed over it, Zelda mentioned in the past years the king having back pain issues due to his size and if that made things easier for him he wasn’t going to protest. After all Sidon probably already warned him about his… sliminess, right? It was a strange feeling being raised at the height of the other’s head but he didn’t protest.

“You know, the last time I saw a zora your color it was almost a hundred years ago…” Wait, really? Was that the reason everyone was staring outside? Now at least it made sense. “And it’s the first time I see an adult man with almost no crest- I mean no offense with that.”

_ ‘None taken’ _

He knew his forehead was way less developed than literally any zora he met so far, he simply assumed it compensated for his incredibly long tail that almost reached the ground. Not that it really mattered to him, it wasn’t like Link understood a lot about how fish people were supposed to look.

“A zora born in Hateno, between hylians, who can hunt dragons and tame giant horses…”

He tensed up, there was something off in Dorephan’s tone, like he was onto him or something. Oh, come on, it made no sense, he was still a big yellow fish with no actual connection to the old Link, it had to be his nerves playing tricks on him.

Control yourself, Link.

“Aren’t you a curious little thing?”

_ ‘I’m merely a traveler, you learn a lot when you see the world.’ _

“I see…how curious, thought, I heard of many travelers, hylian or not, and it’s said only few of them are blessed with the ability to see the dragons.”

Link nervously swallowed and only replied with a shrug and barely spelling out _ ‘good for potions’. _

“Right, you must be quite the alchemist if you can prepare elixirs that work on you, am I wrong?”

_ ‘Dragon parts are strong, I may not get the full effect gerudo or hylians do but I manage… to make them work. More or less. _’

“So you _ are _ an alchemist.”

_ ‘I’m just a wanderer who knows how to survive.’ _

“How fascinating.”

Sweet Hylia he could feel Muzu’s glare as he tried to continue with small chats with the kings, 

“Considering how much my son loves the idea of traveling and living his own adventures I’m not surprised by his interest in you.” The king paused to take a quick look at the prince who was standing behind Link’s shoulders “I mean, you are good friends now, aren’t you?”

_ ‘I suppose.’ _

“Of course we’re friends, father! Lulu is a never ending source of entertainment and I feel so comfortable in his presence he was the first person I managed to confess my romantic interest in the Hero of Hyrule.”

Link’s reaction had been immediate, he abandoned the more relaxed position and placed himself between Sidon and his father in a defensive stance, his long tail also wrapped around the shark’s muscular frame. Suddenly he was extremely glad he had a claymore strapped to his back, how could Sidon…

“My apologies, my friend.” He felt the other’s hands touch his shoulders “I didn’t plan to cause you such distress, I talk so openly about it now I forgot it would upset you.”

Link didn’t reply to that, he just stood there with an arm stretched out between Sidon and the possible threat that was now Dorephan. Hell, he actually hissed when the old man leant forward to be more at eye level with them.

“Oh how I can tell you’ve been raised between hylians at least under Rhoam’s reign, they used to persecute men and women like my son but let me reassure you, I have no intention of hurting my precious son.”

His rational brain tried to tell him he could trust the giant, his emotive side was terrified.

“I want nothing but his happiness, trust me.”

Everyone could be good with words in front of others, it was what happened behind closed curtains that mattered. It was Sidon’s warm voice that somehow managed to talk him down ,reassuring over and over that things were okay until he managed to sign again.

_ ‘I will believe you. For now. As long as you can guarantee me Sidon is going to be fine.’ _

Something flickered in Dorephan’s eyes and the shark’s grip tightened around his shoulders, did he say anything wrong? With hands still shaking perhaps misspelled something. Was it perhaps an inappropriate statement? Too sentimental?

_ ‘He is my best friend.’ _ Link decided to specify for safety, the last thing he needed was to convince Dorephan he was some kind of creep too invested in his son.

“Of course you are. Well, I think I kept you two for long enough. Please proceed to the eastern branch and report back later if you found anything relevant.” Dorephan offered a playful wink “I’d suggest you to dive from this room, there’s plenty of curious zora waiting for you downstairs but I don’t think they’ll jump in water right after you two.”

Right. That was a great idea. He reluctantly unwrapped his tail from the other’s body and reached one of the main arches without bothering, at least in appearance, to offer any formal salute or greeting at the king while leaving. 

“Right after you, dearest.” Sidon was smiling from fin to fin, what the heck “I have one question for my father but it’s... private stuff, please wait for me below.”

Link shrugged and was quickly in the waters of the Domain after abandoning his weapon against the wall, he didn’t mind waiting a bit and his only worry for now was not crashing everything inside his bag.

\- - -

As soon as they heard the splash both Sidon and Dorephan allowed themselves a little squeal even if they made sure not to be too loud.

“It’s him, dad!”

“It’s indeed him, Sidon.”

With a small cough Muzu managed to obtain their attention, he was still standing by the King’s side and was now frowning in confusion.

“Would you two enlighten a poor old man? I kept my eyes glued to our young friend and I didn’t notice anything that’d suggest me he is, indeed, the Champion”

Father and son both raised their hands at the side of their head and moved them with a slow motion bringing the tip of their fingers together as they drew a simple head fin in the air.

“Sidon” They said together and Muzu only tilted his head as the prince almost bounced on the spot, carefully keeping the volume of his voice incredibly low “That’s our sign! I made it on the spot for him to say my name because I was tired of being called his majesty or my prince! He wouldn’t know it if he was someone else!”

“Are you sure he didn’t pick it up from one of our residents? He does speak better than you expected anyway.”

“Everyone else in the Domain speaks and even underwater they never use that sign for me, the less formal way they refer to me is ‘my prince’”

“So… what do we plan to do now?”

Dorephan placed one of his large hands behind his son’s back and pushed him toward the spot Link used to dive.

“Well, I’d say for now Sidon will go with him and then we’ll try to figure out what is happening to the kid. Oh, and Sidon?”

“Yes father?”

“If his reaction right now was anything to go by: be really, really careful if you truly intend to pursue him, he clearly cares about you but I fear he’ll run away if you make your intentions clear too soon.”

Sidon inhaled and nodded, he didn’t know if there was a chance for Link to like men or not, let alone like him when probably half of Hyrule had their eyes on him, but at least he wanted to make sure to help with his beloved’s worries.

“I know. I promise I will try my best, father.”

A bow and then he was in the dark waters below.

\- - -

The underwater portion of the city was breathtaking.

Distant from the eyes of any land dwelling creature there were entire buildings carved inside giant luminous stones and while the architecture itself was simpler than the buildings of the city above with smoother edges and less decorations the citizens living there grew colorful bio luminescent plants that offered a magical atmosphere.

It wasn’t too dark to see, not at the level Link was at least, but he could appreciate the efforts that went in making sure everyone could see even in the deepest levels, after all from his little experience as a zora he could tell didn’t have natural night vision.

A tap against his shoulder reminded him it wasn’t the right time to admire in awe, he was there for a job and nothing else. Perhaps he could try to sneak in unnoticed sooner or later? He was rather curious to see the actual city, not just looking at it from above.

_ ‘This way’ _

He smiled at Sidon’s gestures, while Link knew other zora had their own ways of communicating underwater he wasn’t familiar with them. A nod and they were diving east.

The underwater tunnels were, if possible, as majestic as what he managed to see of the Domain, columns and decorations of Luminous lighted their way, the excavations alone probably took centuries of work. There were inscription stones and monuments like the ones he had to search for Jiahto, more little underwater gardens that stretched for meters creating colorful patterns under them, there was so much care in everything.

Link was so fascinated he ended up bumping three times against the man who was swimming in front of him, he was actually grateful when the prince offered him an understanding smile and reached for his hand to guide him as he admired around.

There was a short moment he suspected the prince took a long way only to boast about his hometown, reaching under Ruto Precipice couldn’t take more than ten minutes at best, but Link didn’t mind. He was even tempted to ask to stop for a moment when he caught a glimpse of a writing about the differences about River and Sea zora, a voice in the back of his head chuckled saying _ Oh how things change, I should know it considering my relationship with time itself _. Okay, no, thank you Ancestor but he didn’t need cryptic messages from the past, he wasn’t even a true ‘Link’ to begin with.

_ You take the sword, you take the role _ someone else whispered, again the one who spoke of open seas and always reaching beyond the sea.

Actually, if he stopped paying attention there were a lot of of carvings about them, the past heroes of hyrule, but…. most things seemed worded as legend but if the past ‘Link’ had been thousands of years in the past how long had those been around?

_ I guess Ruto wanted to make sure some tracks remained, never underestimate the power of someone in love _ There he stopped, blinking and honestly wanting to question that man. It was the same feeling of nostalgia and sadness he got when he picked the name Lulu.

He had seen the monument about Ruto, a zora princess who fell in love with a hylian before. That had to be… how long had they been tracking history as a whole? If their records covered ‘legends’ like that, things he somehow knew being true, who knows what else could be discovered if someone took the time to analyze them all.

Not him, of course, but this? This was the kind of things Zelda was born for. Too bad he had no way to contact her without destroying his cover completely.

He shook his head, turning only to find Sidon looking at him with the widest smile. The prince was, indeed, really proud of his home, mh? Link pointed at himself, at his own heart and then gestured widely around them, he loved that place and wasn’t certainly afraid to admit it.

The prince’s grin somehow managed to widen even further for a moment but they apparently reached their destination and he finally let Link’s hand go swimming toward a small opening in the surface. Oh, well, he could probably ask to take a better look later, right?

As he stepped out of the water he immediately felt his gills itch in the most unpleasant way, every time he placed his feet down the film of moss covering the floor almost seemed to cling to his scales and the light of the stones was dimmed by the fungi growing all over it.

Four steps in, thought, and his attention was completely stolen by the massive stone door right in front of him as his eyes sparkled with recognition: not only the surface was somehow still completely immaculate but it also offered a slight glow by itself. It was as tall as the whole cove and… those carvings, he recognized them.

The golden Zora turned halfway toward his companion, his hands spelling once more letter by letter, if there were two places he never found any ruin of this kind were the Domain and the Goron Mountain. But how…

_ ‘Z o n a i’ _

“Wait, you know what this is?”

He decided to ignore the excitement and admiration in the prince’s voice to check the ruins better. It… it made no sense, he found all ruins, he knew that because each one had a sheikah shrine in the middle from the labyrinth to the forest covered in darkness, from the doors he had to force open with a snowball to the Thundra Plateau. He never actually paid attention to how carefully they overlapped each other, a cooperation of sort perhaps, but it was the first time he found one without a shrine attached.

How could he be so sure about that? Well, if his Tunic of the Wild meant anything and the monks didn’t lie he found them all already. 

_ ‘An ancient, lost tribe. They seemed to worship monster like creatures or perhaps dragons and built large structures but we don’t really know much about them.’ _

The stone was warmer than the rest of the room at the touch and the black substance was clearly leaking from small cracks around its borders… and he wasn’t honestly sure if the black stripes he could see sliding down were an actual dark liquid or just contaminated water. It didn’t seem to affect the water in the corridors below but it was certainly trying to reach everywhere in that place.

“Do you know how to open it? This mold is more a nuisance than anything but it’s been spreading and many families have been forced to move because of it.”

Link signed at the other he needed to think and barely registered when the zora moved at his side as he opened his bag taking various vials out of it, his knowledge on the matter was limited but he could remember people mentioning vinegar, bleach and pea tree oil were excellent ways to combat molds, infusions of hyrule herbs were often used as well like warm safflina ones and he came prepared with two small bottles of each.

Unable to use chalk to write on the walls he poured the liquid on different points of the wall and placed the vials below it to see if it would affect the mold even a little (again, he wasn’t exactly a specialist in home cleaning) and proceeded to scoop a bit of that black disgusting thing in the ones that still had liquid inside and a few empty ones.

There. There wasn’t much else he could do, right? He scratches his sides once more, his gills were annoying him to no end at the moment but it had to be some kind of personal reaction to the suffocating air of the room, Sidon didn’t seem to have any unpleasant reaction to it.

_ ‘And now we wait a bit, I’ll take some home and see what I can find out’ _

“I am immensely grateful, my friend. I assume you don’t know either how to access-”

He shook his head, there were no handles of any kind and the door was sealed shut, he didn’t honestly know how one could even move a giant rock like that. It wasn’t completely a surprise, thought, not considering the size of their statues.

_‘From the little I know there’s no tool to cut their buildings. Something destroyed some of them, Hylia only knows what, and time takes a tool as well on some but part of them has been up for at least ten thousand years and show no sign of their age.’_

“Oh…”

_‘But this caverns confine with the East Reservoir Lake, don’t they? I should check if there’s any access from the other side, that could be what we truly need: find the source, solve the problem.’_

“That’s brilliant! There aren’t really records of anything built there but perhaps it was hidden like this door! It will be a bit inconvenient, of course, we’ll be forced to carry Luminous torches to see anything-”

Wow. wait. We? There was no way in hell he was going to allow Sidon to risk even one of his stupid red scales, no matter how long had it been since Ruta has been a danger of any sort

_ ‘No we. Me.’ _

“It’s_ we _ and non negotiable, my dear.”

_ ‘You could get hurt.’ _

“The worst that can happen is I get a cold, which will be over in a couple of days, and you could use an extra pair of hands to hold a torch for you if we find anything interesting.”

While he was already prepared to personally go to the king to tell him not to let Sidon go… he had a point on the torch, Link was a great swimmer but he was still learning and if experience taught him something pressure could represent a problem hindering his movements, carrying a heavy rock for light could be difficult.

‘_ F i n e _ ’ he spelled out with a huff, letter by letter _ ‘But at the first sign of trouble I want you to head straight to the surface’ _

“Yes sir! I won’t disappoint you, sir!”

He shook his head, chuckling, somehow Sidon always managed to convince him to do whatever he wanted and- wait. Link stopped mid scratch, his fangs barely under the larger scales that protected his gills. He wasn’t just itchy, he was healing.

A gasp escaped his lips as he realized Mipha’s boon was active, that could only mean something was attacking him. Right now. Since he stepped in that stupid dry room. After closing his eyes he tried to take a long, deep breath. Oh, he could definitely feel it in his lungs as well, even if the sensation was less intense.

As soon as realization hit he opened his eyes wide to look at a very confused Sidon. If something was trying to damage him it was probably also attacking the shark and perhaps others, they just lacked the tools to notice it.

_ ‘Out. We get out now.’ _

He made sure to put enough emphasis on each word to let the prince understand how important it was leaving immediately. Link didn’t even give him time to reply, he stashed his bottles back in the bag and started to push him toward the water: whatever was causing the problem couldn’t clearly survive long in the water considering how clean it felt and right now the knight’s priority was making sure Sidon was getting to safety as soon as possible.

Wait… if it didn’t survive long in the water then how was it spreading from cave to cave? His gears turned quickly as he stopped in his tracks to gaze at Sidon’s sides. He could still feel it in his gills and it was probably in the Prince’s as well.

So… the moss was attaching itself to them and using the zora as carriers? 

Okay, if that was the whole extent of the problem it could be contained, right? He dropped his leather bag, he was returning there later anyway since his body seemed to combat it, and pushed Sidon back in the water.

\- - -

Explaining everything to Sidon hadn’t been easy without mentioning Mipha’s grace, his gestures underwater were slow as he mentioned having a faster healing system and a strong awareness of anything happening to his body.

_ ‘So.. the reason we’re still underwater is-’ _

_ ‘Waiting. I know I kept you here for a while now but I can still feel it clinging to me. There are probably spores in the air and they attached themselves to our respiratory system _.’

_ ‘I… don’t want to say your don’t have a right to worry but don’t you think we would have noticed if someone got sick in our city? You say the effect was immediate but I can’t really say there has been a spike in how often the healers have been summoned.’ _

_ ‘I don’t know what to tell you. Are you sure there’s nothing different than usual?’ _

Sidon just replied with a defeated shrug as he floated between bright algae, any other moment Link would have stopped to appreciate his little brother’s cuteness but right now he was just confused and worried.

Mipha’s boon never activated for minor things, he had a moderate allergic reaction to pineapples once and he spent two days recovering in the Trailhead Lodge in Hebra with no help from her.

Link sighed sinking down and sitting on the bottom of the corridor. It made no sense…

_ ‘You said families used to live here, where are they now?’ _

_ ‘Redistributed between the northern and western houses, space is limited in the caves so we couldn’t place them all in one place.’ _

_ ‘What about them?’ _

_ ‘There isn’t much to say. We didn’t really receive any complain or negative report from those areas, it’s even been more peaceful than usual.’ _

Okay, he didn’t like the sound of that, if there was one thing he learnt from his five years of bureaucracy duties while rebuilding Hyrule’s kingdom was: people complained all the time when they felt their places had been unfairly invaded. Hell, they complained for the pettiest shit, having to share their living spaces with others usually was a hell to manage.

_ ‘I need to go and take a look at them’ _

_ ‘Well, I will join you.’ _

_ ‘No you will not. You will go near the surface and wait for me there. My body is actively fighting this, yours didn’t even notice something was wrong. Please, Sidon.’ _

Despite looking skeptical the shark agreed, much to Link’s relief.

_ ‘Before I go, have you been in that room before?’ _

_ ‘Not really, I heard reports from others but I wanted to visit it with you.’ _

_ ‘Good. All I need, then, is indications.’ _

_ ‘I still think you’re worrying too much but if checking on the other branches will give you some peace… please, come with me. _

\---

As soon as he resurfaced in the area the prince told him to check Link’s gills felt on fire, he immediately contracted his abdominal muscles to seal them as much as he could as he tried to take a look around. No mold on the walls, everything seemed pristine, and people moved around like nothing was wrong with their lives. 

How was that possible? 

The man frowned trying to figure out if there was a chance that his senses were fooling him, perhaps Sidon was correct and Mipha’s power just started to go haywire for… reasons he couldn’t understand. Maybe visiting the place she called home awakened something in the little bit of her she carried around.

As soon as he tried to open his gills once more he decided that no, despite the perfect look of that wonderfully lit cave something wasn’t okay. Stepping closer to the local citizens and patiently watching over them some things started to be evident: most of them wandered around almost pretending to be busy with their lives but tended to repeat the same patterns in circles, few others chatted between them but it was never a proper conversation, they barely repeated greetings and basic sentences over and over.

And every time he approached they all turned to look at him but either they asked ‘How can I help you, darling?’ or ‘happy day, isn’t it?’ and stared until he returned their smile. They seemed to expect him to reply at times but pointing at his throat and the scar on it seemed to be a sufficient explanation for them.

He wasn’t dreaming this, those zora weren’t clearly themselves. Not to mention they were awfully thin under their scales, he didn’t notice it from a distance but… the knight was positive that wasn’t a normal built if his knowledge of their bodies was enough.

After preparing himself he approached one of the zora ladies standing by their homes, a large grin on his face, and she… barely acknowledged him before turning her back and stepping inside.

Good, an isolated subject to study.

The moment he stepped in the lady’s kitchen he knew fishing wasn’t the problem. She wasn’t malnourished because she was lacking food, there was plenty of fish in a chest that had been abandoned to rot, she just seemed… absent. 

He stepped closer to study her, pupils were wide and gaze unfocused but she still seemed to function.

“How can I help you, darling?”

The same sentence again. Link frowned before forcing his lips in a friendly smile she immediately returned. He tilted his head, she did the same, he raised a hand to caress her cheek and she imitated him, he snarled in her direction and she didn’t seem to acknowledge it.

Was she mimicking positive behaviors? He wanted to ignore what was now pain around his gills and proceed with this interrogation but a splashing sound caught his attention. Link turned to look at a small, ceramic basin in the corner of the house and as soon as he dared to peek inside he felt his blood run cold.

Probably abandoned to itself and too thin to be healthy was a little blue tadpole near the remaining of a broken egg. The voice of one of the old Links yelling ‘_ zora egg _’ felt like a slap and before he knew it he was holding the little container up.

He knew literally nothing about zora babies but he wasn’t going to leave it there. It was so small and its mother wasn’t clearly interested in taking care of it.

“Food?”

Link almost jumped, he didn’t even hear her approach behind him, that was something only Sidon and a few Sheikah could do. That woman’s mouth was dangerously close to his unprotected neck and he suddenly regretted not wearing his best friend’s gift.

A deep breath and he simply replied with the most uninterested shrug he could offer. He placed the basin with the baby down and prayed to Hylia that whatever was now with him could understand sign language.

_ ‘Can I have it?’ _

“It’s unnecessary.”

Think fast, Link.

_ ‘Good Lure. To get more of us.’ _

A glimmer of intelligence sparkled in her eyes for a couple of seconds as he offered her his dumbest smile, he never really cared about the possible dangers he could personally face but he was no longer alone there.

“Do what you must.”

With that she was leaving, returning to whatever routine she had down there. Link’s knees felt suddenly weak. Okay, he could take the baby outside. And then return to look for more- if he had some kind of immunity then it was his duty to rescue any child in danger.

And zora.

Goddesses, he received the zora mask to be a ‘healer’, perhaps whoever left it for him knew this was coming.

_ My duty, my purpose. _

Checking the kitchen for any kind of valid container to transport the child he managed to find a large and clean jar. As soon as the tadpole was secured inside and the lid sealed he beelined to the entrance of the underwater corridors and dived for their lives.

\- - -

When Sidon saw him he greeted Link with a large smile for two seconds flat before realizing what he was carrying and turning pink in shock. He had no time to sign Link anything because the knight was already pushing the jar with the baby between his arms, moving his to spell a single word.

_ ‘Danger’ _

The shark shook his head before swimming a meter up to breach the surface. It was going to be okay, Link told himself, Sidon couldn’t talk with both hands busy otherwise.

“Did you kidnap a child?”

He didn’t have time for that.

_ ‘Quarantine. All branches where you sent people.’ _

“Lulu, you need to explain me where this little girl comes from first.”

How could he even tell the difference? It was literally a small fish. Oh, well, it didn’t matter.

‘Look at her, she’s starved! Her mother- I think it was her mother, called her food! How comes no one noticed anything?’

Sidon’s eyes were as large as saucer there and he instinctively tightened his hold around the container, while he didn’t seem to completely believe Link he could at least see the signs of neglect on the little creature.

“What do you… if you’re right then what should we do? I need to tell my father-”

As soon as Sidon placed one hand on the ground to get himself out of water Link threw himself on his shoulders, dragging him back in and almost making it break the vase.

“What now?”

_ ‘You are infected. I am infected.’ _

Realization seemed to hit the prince as a ton of bricks.

“Oh, no… oh, no, I am so sorry, my friend, I didn’t mean to-”

Link silenced him placing his hand against his mouth, the last thing he needed now was to deal with a panicking prince “Sssh…” he did his best to sound reassuring, gently patting the top of his head and not protesting when the bigger man crushed him in a strong hug between his arm and the jar. 

When they parted the worst seemed to be over, his eyes were still filled with guilt and regret but they didn’t have the luxury of time. Even if he indulged himself in a few more caresses on the other’s cheeks he soon had to pull back.

“What do we do now.”

He was glad to see his best friend was on the same page, despite everything he sounded ready to take action.

_ ‘You believe me, then?’ _

“Always.”

_ ‘Good.’ _ What to do? He barely knew the Domain beside what was on the surface _ ‘We need to make sure no one can escape and spread this even further. I don’t know much about what’s happening right now but I can tell two things: if you’re infected you’re not yourself, you act like a doll that’s moving around pretending to be aware, and it doesn’t seem to spread in water.” _

The prince lowered his gaze on the little tadpole and Link nodded in his direction. Yes, she was probably safe.

_ ‘I can feel it on my gills right now, I think that’s where it attaches itself, but when I’m in water I think it stops trying to spread. Is there a safe space for you to go?’ _

“Well, yes, almost of the Undercity is completely submerged, only the caves have special air bubbles, we’re amphibious and people have different preferences on how to live.”

_ ‘Good.’ _

“The caves have defense mechanisms, we can try to block the main doors but those are designed to keep enemies out, not inside.” A pause “Not to mention I’d rather find a way to help them than leaving them on their own.”

_ ‘That makes you a good prince and a wonderful man but there is a whole city under us to protect. We are the proof in the first stage you can move around and spread it and I can tell you the ones I saw earlier aren’t as inoffensive as they seem.’ _

“It makes no sense, if it’s weak to water why is it here of all places?”

_ ‘It makes perfect sense, big boy. I know little more than you but if you wanted to seal something away where would you put it?’ _

“Somewhere it can’t escape.”

The prince seemed to consider his options for what Link felt it was an eternity, awkwardly proceeded to place a kiss against his short crest and turned his attention to the balconies above.

“I know you’re looking at us, everyone, so listen carefully: I, Prince Sidon and current heir to the throne, am proclaiming quarantine.”

\- - - 

Link understood something like half of Sidon’s orders, between him and his father’s combined decisions nets had been placed to prevent infected zora from swimming away, the ladder that connected the bottom of the Domain with the above buildings had been removed and the preparation for closing the gates leaving toward the side branches had been started.

Before that… Link needed to check them all first.

The citizens living in the buildings below were going to be informed later and Sidon was going to wait in the Indigo Palace, the Kingdom’s kindergarten where tadpoles spent their first five years of life before developing lungs. It had a couple of air pockets in it, unlike most of the actual Undercity, but if more babies were going to be brought there he wanted at least to help like that.

The knight waited until the little blue girl had been entrusted to people who actually knew what to do and then he was off swimming.

\- - -

Twelve hours, seven tadpoles and a small terrified toddler later, Link was almost sure he found everyone he could save. Whenever he approached a basin and found life he quickly scooped the child up in one of the containers he had been given by the medics and hurried to the guards who were waiting for him at the entrance of the caves, if he found he didn’t make in time he allowed himself a moment to mourn before proceeding further.

The young kid had been the real surprise, he noticed his parents were acting strange and hid in the pool, coming out only to fetch food when it was truly necessary… just to gather enough courage to attack Link when he assumed he was there to attack his baby sister.

How he managed to calm him down and explain he wasn’t there to hurt anyone with only one hand and without attracting the world was a mystery to Link himself but he didn’t hesitate to bolt away as soon as he secured both of them.

By the time he decided to stop his whole body was aching and his mind was absolutely dizzy, as much as he wanted to push himself further it wasn’t going to help anyone if he let himself fall to ‘that’.

The best moment of the day? When he stepped in the southern branch and realized it was still clean. The eastern was empty and covered in mold, the northern and the western were full of zora who almost acted like zombies but one small part of the dried caves seemed fine. 

Guards were sent to inform all the families of the current situation but that was all for now:he was going to keep an eye on them, of course, but it was one less area in immediate danger.

Link couldn’t shake a sense of guilt as he slowly moved to the place where Sidon was, there had probably corners he didn’t check or something but- he needed to rest. And of course as soon as he reached the chapel where most nurses worked the knight was informed it wasn’t probably going to be so easy.

\- - -

He reached one of the few dry rooms of the Palace with the intent of toss Sidon on his shoulders and drag him by force to the nearest pool. They created air bubbles to prevent tadpoles of different ages to move around and maybe hurt smaller ones, certainly not to allow a big, idiotic prince to let whatever the fuck that mold was to grow stronger.

A loud clap of his hands managed to get the Prince’s attention since Link leaving the water followed by the head of one of the nurses didn’t seem enough.

_ ‘What. The. Fuck. You shouldn’t be here, you should be in water!’ _

He was going to murder that shark, really! Someone spent almost a day swimming and probably raising both Revali and Mipha from their graves channeling their power all the time and the other dared to sit down in a corner like it was the end of the world.

Where was the optimistic prince he adored?

“I don’t want to stay underwater.”

The utter stupidity of that sentence considering the situation and the almost childish tone of voice immediately raised some red flags turning Link’s anger into worry. He exchanged a nervous look with the green man behind them, only his eyes and crest visible above water, and took a seat in front of his friend.

_ ‘Sidon, we both need to stay underwater as long as possible and you know it.’ _

“It’s just a theory, for all I’ve seen you’ve just been busy bringing kids in this place all day and who’s telling me they’re not yours and you’re just trying to discard them here like you did with me?”

For a moment Link didn’t even know what to reply, that wasn’t Sidon talking, was it? He and the nurse exchanged another glance and the golden zora wrapped the prince in a strong hug, in part cuddling in part trying to force him to change his position.

_ ‘You’re right, I’ve been with a lot of kids today but I neglected my favorite one, you.’ _

“I’m not a kid.”

_ ‘Allow me to cuddle you a bit to make up for it.’ _

Head pats, snuggles and hugs followed for a long moment and Link couldn’t express how grateful he was with the other zora for being able to find the courage to stay there. At least as soon as Nasan realized the eel’s hands were slowly descending toward the prince’s gills his eyes widened and he offered a vigorous nod once more.

Good, he knew what Link wanted to do.

“You shouldn’t touch people like this without properly committing first.”

Sidon’s voice managed to send shivers down his spine, it was an octave lower than usual and more akin a growl than his velvety talk. Link had to stop for a second before finding the strength to move further down.

Chaos immediately followed.

One second the prince was almost purring against his neck and the only thing that kept Link from running was the awareness Sidon wasn’t acting like himself at all and needed his help, the one immediately after the man was pinning him down on the luminous floor baring his teeth and hissing like an animal.

All he did was lift the scales protecting his gills.

Sweet Hylia, he didn’t even know the other could move so fast. No, no time to marvel, he needed to think fast: he could easily overpower Sidon. Probably. His worry was allowing him to destroy anything in the place or hurting anyone else if he attempted to flee.

He needed to… to…

“Sir, I’ve seen them, they’re positively turning black!”

Link’s eyes widened as Sidon’s head snapped in Nasan’s direction, his growls deepening even further. Fantastic, the big kid there probably just exposed himself trying to be over diligent in his work and Sidon seemed almost like a rabid beast.

“It’s him, isn’t he?”

Never before in his life the knight had wished with such intensity to be able to speak. Only once, just to yell a good old _ what the fuck _.

Still, trying to move his arms free to talk had been a terrible idea, it was like releasing a spring that had been contained for too long. Link didn’t even_ think _: he saw Sidon sprinting toward the unarmed man with teeth and claws out, he jumped on his back and used his own electricity to stun him.

The green zora’s terrified expression probably matched his as the Prince fell to the ground with a loud thud. Was he- oh, thank Hylia, he was breathing. After shaking off the initial shock Link finally managed to turn his attention to the young man who was still breathing their same air like an idiot.

_ ‘He’s alive. He just fainted. I know I’m a nature freak please don’t panic.’ _

“Sir.”

_ ‘I didn’t mean to hurt him, really, I’d rather die than do this again.’ _

“Sir.”

_ ‘He was attacking you and I acted before.’ _

“Sir, I think that was quite badass.”

He blinked, a tired chuckle escaping his lips. That wasn’t the reaction he expected.

_ ‘Please don’t tell anyone I can do that, I don’t want people to be afraid of me. And…’ _

“Don’t worry sir. And you were correct, the coloration of his gills is off, completely unnatural. There still are many healthy looking parts but there were many spots covered in black.”

Link nodded, while his were irritated but still a bright natural color he knew things could be different for others. And Sidon was sick. Oh, hell, he was going to keep him with the head underwater as long as it needed.

_ ‘Make sure you find someone who can keep you under control, we still don’t know how this thing works, and- buddy?’ _

“Yes?”

_ ‘Do you have any room with a strong door that can be locked from the outside?’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Aw, he wants me as one of his guests of honors." says Link  
"THE guest of honor." replies Sidon.
> 
> And yes, the ending was absolutely romantic, IDK how you all are still sticking with me but I PROMISE I WILL MAKE UP IN THE NEXT CHAPTER. 
> 
> ... or, well, at some point of the story.


	9. It's just a bracelet...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all I wanted to thank the wonderful [Azelforest](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azelforest/pseuds/Azelforest) for their wonderful [fanart ](https://azelforest-art-corner.tumblr.com/post/188510792721/i-found-this-really-great-fanfic-on-ao3-and-i-just), look at this eel boy! Their style is wonderful so, please, go check their tumblr as well, I scrolled down and it was a joy for my eyes.
> 
> I'm feverish and instead of resting I ended up writing because I'm a smart woman. I hope this chapter is okay. I tried my best despite the circumstances and considering the wonderful feedback I'm receiving on this fanfiction I'm terrified by the idea of messing things up now **''' Please let me know if there's anything wrong or that I should, in your opinion, fix.
> 
> Again: Mild warning for horror, mold related mind control and in this case unconscious self harm.

_ ‘Before we begin: why do we have a fry with us?’ _

Rooms underwater weren’t much different from the ones on the surface, when Link gathered with the rest of the medical team he was actually surprised to see a table with actual chairs at the side. All was sculpted in stone or weighted down in some way, it was quite impressive how one could probably move from the dry areas to the submerged ones without having to change anything about their lifestyles.

They even had their own ways to write! He knew their paper was made with thinly crushed opal powder to enhance and make it waterproof but admiring pens what somehow managed to leave signs on it despite having no ink?

If he only had time he would have stopped to admire and study it, probably even ask if he could share that technology with hylians because he knew his men -no, they no longer were _ his _\- could probably take advantage of that. A way to properly write even under heavy rain? Fantastic for scouting missions.The fact all writing disappeared when the paper dried up? Perfect for secret messages that needed to be disposed easily.

But he wasn’t the captain of the hylian armies anymore and he definitely had more important things to deal with: representatives of the zora army, medical stuff from the Indigo Palace and medics from the actual hospital of the Domain all gathered together so they could discuss the current situation. It was a bit weird being allowed in despite being a complete nobody but Link just assumed they wanted to keep one of the two known infected and still healthy men around.

Considering the other was currently locked in the hospital’s greenhouse.

It was weird finding out they didn’t have proper doors underwater, it was apparently important to keep water flowing because zora bladders stopped working when the gills were active and ammonia wastes were disposed through them like it happened with fishes. 

The place where rare algae were used to prepare potions and elixirs for fellow zora was one of the few places with metal bars and a proper gate in front, mostly because some of the plants could have some strong side effects and consumption was limited… and once all vases had been brought out Sidon, still unconscious, had been pushed in.

After witnessing his violent reaction as he woke up Link had been glad they didn’t wait before locking him in.

He closed his eyes trying to block the mental image of one of the most important people in his life slamming his whole body against the metallic bars, desperately trying to bite the metal even if his crest kept getting in the way and growling.

Hylia, the growling.

Zoras couldn’t produce a lot of sounds underwater, even if they seemed to ask for each other’s attention with almost dolphin like calls that was all, but the vibrations of Sidon’s growls were loud enough for everyone to hear. The so called bravest man in Hyrule had to leave the building in a hurry because that wasn’t something he was ready for.

He was ready to help dealing with the issue at hand, thought, this is why he was sitting around a large round table with some of the most important people of the Undercity. With a baby on his lap.

_ ‘He kept throwing a tantrum because he can’t stay in his sister’s pool so he’s with me.’ _

_ ‘It’s a girl.’ _ How could they even tell? He carried seven zora in larval stage earlier and they all looked the exact same to him, color aside ‘ _ And that doesn’t explain why she’s here, there’s plenty of caretakers in the Palace.’ _

_ ‘I am her caretaker for now. And- she’s our subject number one. I’m number two.’ _ No one even dared to say who number three was even if few nervous glances were exchanged _‘Now, let’s get over all we know.’_

_ ‘Yes sir.’ _ Link rolled his eyes, no matter how many times he asked Nasan just to call him Lulu, the young nurse still kept a formal tone around him. Ignoring the toddler’s nibbles on his head fin, the kid at least seemed to enjoy playing with it, Link tried to focus.

The mold appeared a moon ago, more or less, and at first it was only in small patches on the walls. A week later it was enough to cause issues and despite not apparently causing any health related problem families had been relocated in two separate branches of the city, the southern one being left alone because the difference in pressure usually made it undesirable for those who didn’t inherit traits from depth dwelling fishes.

That was two weeks ago, when Link went to find Sidon’s horse.

The infected zora probably managed to fool whoever came to contact them enough in order to spread the disease further… the fact the lady he came in contact with seemed slightly aware as soon as he mentioned adding more people only helped confirming this a bit more.

_ ‘Sir, one question.’ _ He nodded at the purple zora who waved her hand first to get the table’s attention _ ‘You said our Prince shown signs of hydrophobia in less than half a day but this kid has been exposed for weeks and she seems comfortable in water.’ _

_ ‘We discussed this already’ _ it was Nasan who stepped in the discussion there, the nurse had been incredibly helpful to Link so far and he was grateful the other didn’t question much as Link proceeded to ask probably basic things about zora biology ‘ _ The child just left her larval stage, her lungs aren’t fully formed yet and while she can stay on land it can’t be for more than three or four hours at time.’ _

_ ‘Hence our suspect this infection somehow knows how to choose its hosts.’ _

_ ‘And how comes you have no reaction to it?’ _

Of course, he was probably the most suspicious person in town in that moment: all the chaos started when he came to visit in their eyes.

_ ‘As I already explained to our medical staff: my immune system is more effective than other zora, I can feel the infection but my body is incredibly efficient in fighting it.’ _

_ ‘We can confirm it.’ _ Thanks, Nasan _ ‘We already took some blood samples as well to see if we can obtain some kind of antidote from it. Blood samples from Prince Sidon has shown the presence of psychotropic substances in it and we suspect this is how the host is being controlled.’ _

_ ‘Our gills are extremely vascularized and the blood that passes from them goes right into our system without filters of sort, it’s the perfect location for any parasite to attach itself if their goal is to control the host.’ _

The discussion proceeded mostly covering what they already know, mostly to explain the whole situation to everyone and make sure no one underestimated the potential danger. He learnt the monument that hid the door was so old all inscriptions had deteriorated by the time it was removed, that even checking the archives no signs of pre-existent buildings in that area were mentioned and that zoras living underwater rarely went into dry areas unless they had to trade or share news.

_ ‘Okay… so…’ _ Link reached for the little kid detaching her teeth from his tail and placing her once more on his lap _ ‘In short: We need to find all the guards who came in contact with the local population during those days and confine them as well for safety.’ _

_ ‘Considering they probably talked with the civilians without leaving the water they’re probably safe, I have been partially exposed myself but I had no negative effects so far and I can only attribute it to my gills never being directly exposed to air. It’s just…. we’re taking precautions.’ _

Right. He still thought the green zora had been reckless, especially considering he almost got attacked by Sidon, but that was another important information to have. Link felt his lungs being assaulted as well at times but they didn’t feel like the mold actually ever managed to take hold of it.

_ ‘That.... may be problematic, sir.’ _

Link blinked giving a gray zora his attention, her name was Hoten or something like that if he remembered correctly and she was in charge of coordinating units underwater under Bazz’s command.

_ ‘Explain, please.' _

_ ‘There were only three men involved in that since the whole thing had been coordinated and more than peaceful and they all took a vacation break two weeks ago. I, of course, granted them one, I know what it’s like wanting to take a long fishing break. They aren’t scheduled to return until next month.’ _

Well, shit. Okay, assuming the worst some infected zora perhaps managed to escape the quarantine after all.

_ ‘Do you know where they went?’ _

_ ‘Fishing. I’m sorry, sir, I didn’t ask for more, I didn’t know it was relevant.’ _

Link bit his lips, with his body he tested far and wide where zora could live and there weren’t many places too easy to reach beside Lake Hylia, the bodies of water around the Domain, the one around the castle… okay, there were still plenty of options for them to be.

All the places connected by Regencia river, just to mention some large lakes, were good to go. there was lake Siela, the whole area of Faron… goddess, he just hoped they were just traveling around, if Nasan’s theory about needing a direct gill exposure was right perhaps they were safe.

_ ‘So what do we do now?’ _he finally asked, waiting to hear the opinion of people clearly more knowledgeable of the zora ways than him. Link didn’t like how they all exchanged nervous looks before another zora, Naje, finally decided to speak.

_ ‘We were actually waiting for you to tell us, sir.’ _

A blink. What?

_ ‘Excuse me?’ _

_ ‘We… thought you knew? One of the last things the prince did before isolating himself was to declare if anything happened to him we were to follow your every order. That places you right below the King.’ _

Oh, no no no… Sidon, what the hell?

\- - -

The only explanation the whole small council managed to offer him was that Sidon wasn’t probably thinking straight when he gave that order and with his brain not working properly he only decided a person with some kind of natural immunity would be the best to deal with the situation. 

It didn’t make Link feel any better, he ran away from Zelda escaping this kind of responsibilities and back in the days it was a duty he had toward hylians, people he more or less understood, he barely knew what zora were actually like.

He still managed to delegate duties: Hoten was to keep an eye on the various entrances to the dry caves, bars were to be placed at the entrances in addition to the stone doors he hoped not to use, they just wanted to be extra careful not to alarm any of the sick zora until proper defenses had been raised.

The medics took more blood samples from him, some from the child whose name was still a mystery (and, man, that had been difficult, he literally had to hold a screaming kid all the time) and they promised they’d do their best to find any clue with it. 

Capturing a live infected zora from the residential areas was the second priority, the more they could study the better, but considering they needed to build a second prison room first… Link was going to wait for that.

It was weird, they more or less all agreed to ‘wait and see’ while being on guard and he couldn’t blame them since they only had so much to work with. 

And that was what made his presence important, he was the only person who could get exposed and gather information without the risk or being overwhelmed by whatever was in the air. 

_ ‘Please inform your men I will visit the western caves soon, I will get samples and try to see if I can gather more clues.’ _

_ ‘Sir.’ _

Goddess, he really disliked being saluted now… but he said nothing anyway. Oh, he was so leaving the city once this issue was finally solved. He missed his horses and his small cold hut so much right now…

A bag was prepared for him with a large selection of liquids to test, a notebook was offered him with one of those miraculous inkless pens and he was ready to go. It was going to hurt, yes, his gills were still recovering from earlier and his body still felt stiff after abusing Revali’s power to speed up all day but… when people needed him he wasn’t going to back off.

_ ‘Sir.’ _

_ ‘Nasan, I’m ordering you to call me by name.’ _

_ ‘I… yes Lulu.’ _

Thank goddess that worked, he probably had to do the same with the rest of the zora, he didn’t want to think about his men whenever he spoke with them. Link forcefully detached once more the kid from his tail, according to one of the nurse it was a natural behavior since she was still growing her teeth, and placed her between the green nurse’s arms.

Her reaction wasn’t the best, she started wailing moving her tiny arms toward the golden zora (another understandable reaction since she seemed to associate him to safety) but he couldn’t really take a child with him for that, could he? She wasn’t exactly going to understand the situation.

Right?

He hummed considering a few things, she was smart enough to understand both she and her sister (brother? He didn’t know anymore.) were in danger and that she needed to provide for both so perhaps…

_ ‘Let me try something.’ _

He took her back and without even explaining himself he was already swimming toward the bottom of the building in search of a room he already learnt to despise. He kept telling himself he was doing it to try to soothe the child’s worries, to make her understand why he couldn’t be her caretaker all the time and why she couldn’t be given under a proper family’s care since she had been infected as well but… he knew the truth.

As much as he wanted to run away, he also needed to see Sidon one last time before leaving.

Link stopped floating in front of the improvised prison’s door, close enough to see inside but distant enough to be out of reach if the shark tried to grab him. He wasn’t afraid of him, he couldn’t be, but they weren’t alone right now.

The prince was still there, slowly swimming inside and still looking for a way out, there were claw marks on the walls and some of the shelves had been broken or thrown around. Sidon was almost like a wild animal desperately trying to get out and it broke his heart.

His baby brother, his best friend, his... his…

Link shook his head holding the baby in front of himself for a moment and signing for her, the prince still had to take notice of them as he scratched the roof and the knight wanted to take his time to explain what he could. He had been told she couldn’t talk yet, not with her arms still too short to sign, but he knew she could understand.

_ ‘There are many people like your mom and your dad. This is my best friend. I can’t stay with you all the time because I need to help him and help your family. I know you don’t know the nurses but you need to be brave. _ ’ The pout on her face made it clear enough she was able to read his hands just fine _ ‘We are trying to heal this big kid here, once we do we will know how to heal everyone else. Even your parents.’ _ Her eyes shined with hope _ ‘So can you be a good girl for a little? I promise I will stay away only when it’s really necessary.’ _

The small nod she finally gave made him sigh with relief, now the other caretakers could probably take over without too many problems, right? He loved kids but at the same time he didn’t really have time for her now.

_ ‘Good girl. _’ he signed before feeling a shiver running down his spine.

Turning, Link found Sidon at the gate, his unfocused eyes studying him and the kid. The knight couldn’t even move for a long moment, not even when he had to find and save Zelda he felt such a mighty need to solve all problems. Now. Why couldn’t Hylia with her mighty power just snap her fingers for once and save the day instead of relying on him for literally everything?

But he was there for a reason. Someone put things in motions to make sure he’d be there and even if Link was a more selfish person he knew nothing could stop him from trying to bring Sidon back.

Little sharp teeth piercing the delicate white skin on the base of his tail returned him to reality and the knight sighed, he really had a lot of work to do, didn’t he?

Moving his gaze back to the prince he found him… with one arm sticking out of the bars, index pointed toward the kid, and he his expression was a mix of confusion and outrage. Was it because he was allowing someone to touch him even if zora were usually against it?

_ ‘It’s okay, Sidon, I don’t mind it. Honestly, if she can handle the slimy film on my skin she deserves to chew me.’ _

He didn’t expect Sidon to have enough lucidity to interact with him, when he let the bar go and started to move his hands like he wanted to speak but couldn’t coordinate movements too well, nor knew what to say.

_ ‘Yours’ _

Was that a question? The beginning of a sentence? Link waited a moment before raising his own hands and repeating Sidon’s movement in an attempt to prompt him to continue.

_ ‘Yours’ _

Come on, silly shark, you had it in you.It was already such a relief finding out Sidon still was in there even if he didn’t seem well at all. 

Link watched as Sidon’s eyes widened for a moment and in a brief moment of lucidity he touched his own chest with immense surprise, pointed at the baby girl again and for a flash he almost seemed himself again as he offered the widest smile and an enthusiastic nod.

For a little while the shark was full of pride, joy, it was like he had just been gifted the moon itself. Oh… oh, dear, did he think he just had a…. no, it couldn’t be, even if his thought processes were- nah.

He massaged his temples trying to figure out what was passing in the other’s mind and it was almost painful when the prince’s eyes unfocused again and he started attempting to chew on the prison’s bars once more.

This wasn’t good for his heart, not at all. Sidon was beautiful, brilliant, perhaps a bit childish at times, not… this. And it was weird because the others walking around the city seemed better in interacting? Or at least at pretending to?

_ ‘Sidon.’ _

Golden eyes slowly moved to his hands once more but the shark’s attempts to reach the metal with his jaws didn’t stop.

_ ‘Why do you want to leave that room so badly?’ _

The prince shook his head as if Link just asked the stupidest question of all times. It took him a long time to remember the words he wanted to use but when he did

_ ‘Can’t breathe’ _

That wasn’t true, Sidon had been underwater for hours now and there was no sign of lack of oxygen, with medics constantly checking on him someone would have noticed if anything was wrong.

_ ‘You’re fine, I promise’ _

_ ‘I’m scared.’ _

Link clenched his jaw, part of him wanted to rejoice because it wasn’t probably Sidon talking but the parasite. Staying underwater was hopefully damaging it or at least preventing it to spread further, it was the mold talking, not Sidon.

The other part of him wanted to open the doors and let him out because there was nothing worse than looking at the man’s desperate expression. He had to be strong for both.

_ ‘You said you’d always believe me so…. listen _ ’ It wasn’t like Link didn’t do his fair share of lying, especially since he got the zora mask. but Sidon didn’t need to know _ ‘I promise I will do anything in my power to keep you safe. Sadly it means I have to keep you here.’ _

Sidon’s lip was trembling now but Link didn’t know how much he could believe that.

_ ‘I commit myself to your safety and well being, I commit to your happiness and health.’ _ It wasn’t easy to push down the voice in the back of his head saying -and more- but he really, really didn’t want to acknowledge it, it was easier blaming anything weird on the current levels of stress than admitting anything about himself _ ‘So please, trust me. _’

Link had to be grateful for his reflexes as a warrior because as soon as he reached forward in an attempt to touch Sidon’s hand the shark’s expression suddenly changed and his claws darted in the golden zora’s direction. 

The knight’s arm had been retreated in time but the swipe still drawn blood and Link froze realizing what could have happened if sidon got hold of him. Especially considering he still had a child clinging to his tail. What was he thinking? He couldn’t let his desire to comfort the other get in the way, not when he was apparently the one in charge of fixing this mess.

At least when the blood reached the other’s gills he seemed to realize what he had done and gaped in horror, sudden awareness brightening his eyes. Before link could say or do anything Sidon was gone, now hiding in a corner of the room the knight couldn’t see without opening the door or at least getting too close once more.

He waited there for a moment, almost hoping to see the prince return, but when nothing happened for a while he accepted that the visit was over, turned away and retraced his tracks to meet the rest of the medical staff once more.

It was emotionally draining seeing Sidon like that and Link didn’t protest when Nasan proceeded to bandage his arm nor allowed the kid’s protests to touch him when he handed her to the nurses There was only one thing that mattered and it was getting Sidon out of there.

\- - - 

The only way Link managed to find his way back to the big room inside the caves was following the writings on the walls: the stone about sea zora, one that spoke of a wolf of shadows, he couldn’t really understand how zora oriented themselves in those corridors, it certainly was an impressive task.

_ Pft, that’s nothing, you should have seen the old Temple of Water. _He literally slapped out of his mind his ancestor, the last thing he needed now was to be distracted by the old ‘Links’ talking. 

Reaching the surface had been as unpleasant as the first time but, awkwardly enough, it wasn’t as painful as walking around the walking districts. It made little sense considering the room containing the stone door was completely covered in mould while in the populated areas he could only feel it but no real traces of the contamination could be seen. 

It wasn’t surprising finding out none of the vials he poured against the wall had any effect, this was way more than a domestic infestation after all. And his bag was still there, barely covered by a thin layer of black dust, probably spores.

If only he decided to pack his slate as well, that would have helped at least in figuring out how far under the mountains he was and how many chances there were this was in contact with the East Reservoir. After all the submerged area had to be incredibly deep, if he remembered his map correctly only the sea itself and some points around Rito Village and the castle were such a dark blue.

Well, he couldn’t certainly leave the quarantined area to check, could he? There was at least a stairway to climb to reach it and the last thing he wanted was to expose the part of the city above water to whatever was attacking them. It was already a miracle no one seemed really affected by it, at least according to Rivan and Bazz.

A miracle or another clue? 

Link scratched his head before recovering his old bag and opening to check the small bottles she collected earlier. Well, at least the mold in acidic solution… changed color? Still, he couldn’t really tell if it turning green meant anything important or not, without a proper alchemic stand there was really little he could do beside bringing it to the medical staff.

Perhaps he could give them instructions and have a working area prepared for him in one of the dry rooms? Kodah had some useful stuff at the inn and perhaps she could be convinced to drop it in the water below for the time being.

Then again he wasn’t sure how long he could keep a small flame running in a tiny bubble of air before running short of oxygen. Well, a problem for later, right?

He proceeded to collect more samples with the containers he had been provided by the research group, his head still running ideas as he mechanically repeated the same movements over and over, and he placed both bags near the entrance.

Now, the door didn’t really offer many clues by itself, it was a slate of rock with the now familiar markings that vaguely reminded Link of gusts of air and heads of dragons, but he still had a whole residential quarter to explore.

And this one was absolutely covered in disgusting black stuff.

Assuming the… thing had some kind of intelligence there had to be a reason this area was clearly infested but the rest wasn’t, right? Hell if he knew.

The housing area didn’t really offer much more in terms of hints, all had been abandoned without much care, food had been left to rot and things were scattered around the house like they didn’t matter. He couldn’t help himself from checking all the ceramic containers but each time all he got was further heartbreak.

Well, he couldn’t waste time being sad about that, he could feel awfully guilty for not knowing and not being able to help later.

It was when he was about to leave that a shiver alerted him something was close, too close. 

Link barely managed to dart forward when sharp-edged teeth snapped close right next to his neck, strong jaws ripping the scarf away and managing to leave a wound on his skin. Now he finally understood why zora insisted in wearing jewelry around their neck.

Before he could turn he was already dodging another attack, by the time he managed to face his attacker he had already been forced to dodge another snap.

And, Hylia, he didn’t really like what he saw.

The person… no, the creature in front of him certainly used to be a zora but the infection took its toll on it and, goddess, if that was a later stage he was glad it so far the rest of the citizens could at least still pretend to be normal.

The zora’s teeth had grown to an abnormal length, they were big enough the knight could tell its jaw was dislocated even if it still seemed to have control on it, the skin was dry and broken, many scales were missing and the delicate skin was exposed and broken in multiple patches.

Signs of malnutrition were even more evident on this one, the chest was so hollow he could perfectly see the shape of its ribs, the eye sockets curved inward like small caves and all he could see of the eyes was a silver iris surrounded by dark circles with no pupil in sight.

Still, despite reminding Link more of a corpse than anything else it was fast.

Years of training between the wild and practice with his soldiers yet he could barely avoid its swipes, claws and jaws moving at unnatural speed. So he wasn’t wrong, when Sidon pinned him down that wasn’t probably his normal speed either-

Daruk’s protection activating and preventing his chest to open wide when one of the attacks actually managed to hit, that’s when the warrior realized what his disadvantage was: all creatures he faced has some kind of pattern, even the weakest bokoblins still had their own and Link was usually the real jack of all trades who knew how to surprise.

This… thing?

It had no real style, it was a raw, primordial force that only aimed to vital points without any reservation, without trying to protect itself, and it wanted Link dead. Okay, he could adapt to that as well, he just had to offer openings if he wanted to know where it was going to hit.

Why was it even hostile now? Did it sense Link wasn’t being controlled?

He would think about that later, for now he had to defend himself and, if possible, stun the creature to drag it back: even if they had no prison to keep it perhaps with enough nets they could hold it prisoner as long as they needed to find a suitable place for it.

Link kept backing toward the entrance of the cave, either offering his heck or his chest for swipes and bites and reacting accordingly, it was a relief to see the zora, what was left of it at least, didn’t seem to notice his tactic.

Show the chest, dodge, give a good angle to bite the jugular, dodge, it was with no doubts an exhausting dance, especially considering his fighting style was usually a full charge, never a shameless retreat.

At least it was just a single zora, he couldn’t see himself dodging more of them.

When he finally felt close enough to water to zap it and drag it under the surface Link tilted his head up and moved his left foot behind in what was apparently an unbalanced position, the most vulnerable he used so far, and the creature bit the bait.

A small smirk appeared on his lips as he grabbed one of the zora’s wrists pulling it forward, using his other hand to block both dangerous hands and slipping behind its back to be safe from it long toenails. Not that it used them so far but he knew how dangerous those could be. 

With both of the thing’s arms held strongly over his shoulders, his back against the zora’s, Link wrapped its body with his long, slippery tail and proceeded to call for Urbosa’s fury. After this whole ordeal he was probably going to pay homage to all the champions, especially Mipha and the arrogant bird, he was probably giving them no time to relax.

He waited for a moment to feel the creature fall against his back… but it didn’t happen. While it stopped for a couple of seconds, it only started pulling with more energy to free itself. How… why? Zora couldn’t even deal with shock arrows, he was the only weird exception, and this thing? This thing just took in a fully charged Fury.

‘_ -Rosh _’

Link’s eyes widened when he realized the other was now trying to talk, its voice a feral hiss filled with rage.

_ ‘Farosh’ _

The… dragon? Did it really mistake him for that large serpent who seemed to have a great sense of humor and perfect timing appearing whenever Link was stuck climbing around Floria’s falls during a thunderstorm to zap him even further?

Okay, he perhaps was a yellow, serpent like, electric bastard but-

_ ‘FaROoOoosh’ _

The screech that followed had him freeze, it was a shrill noise filled with rage, a deafening roar that echoed in the cave like a desperate cry.

And someone answered.

Link didn’t even know how many shrieks raised around them, he checked most of the habitable area and there was no one in sight, where were they hiding? The mold condensating and starting to bubble, raise and form a vaguely humanoid shape gave him the answer he needed.

A quick glance around him to check the chunks of deformed, black meat, something so similar to the malice he knew so well yet totally different, was enough to know he couldn’t win the battle. He had no weapons, Mipha’s power was already stretching to keep him safe, the bleeding gash on his neck was proof that Daruk’s protection couldn’t completely cover him, Urbosa’s fury was just proven useless… that only left-

_ Why are you still talking to yourself, you idiot? Run! _

Asshole bird. Thank Hylia he was there.

He didn’t even need to think about a safe way to get rid of the zora against his back, the creature started to pull forward and its arms simply detached with the most disgusting sound and he had to dash back to avoid its teeth once more. Even if it only had stumps instead of hands its claws were still there.

A kick to the stomach was enough to push it back, its body probably still adjusting to its new form, and the knight took that chance to run. He only had time to grab one of the bags, the one he brought there in the first place, and was already in the water swimming full speed.

_ Go left! RIGHT! Now left! _ He never treasured so much hearing voices in his head before but as his ancestors gave him directions, sometimes even arguing with each other, he felt the luckiest Link in the world.

Especially considering how the shrieks he could hear in the water not too far from him were enough to know any hesitation could have been lethal.

The light of the entrance was the most welcomed sight and as he darted outside it was a relief to see two of the knights already ready to drop the stone door in front, they probably heard the commotion inside and worried.

A nod was all Link needed and the entrance was shut just in time, he managed to see shadows behind it but nothing passed further, a solid block locking the way. 

He let himself sink for a moment, the whole body relaxing in relief, but even there he couldn’t stop yet. If the thing was now aware it had been discovered, somehow, they needed to seal all possible contaminated areas now.

Link pushed his bag between one of the soldier’s arms and proceeded to sign ignoring their attempts to help him with the still bleeding wound.

_ ‘You take those samples to the hospital. You, run to the northern gate, they need to shut it close as well, I will alert the western one.’ _

He didn’t even wait for a reply, he summoned the rito’s power once more ignoring his own growing dizziness and started to move full speed toward the other unit of men. The northern gate was closer, his men could handle it quickly enough, the one he was running to was on the other side of the Domain and he needed to push as much as he could.

It was a joy finding out nothing tried to leave the gate when he reached it and, as much as he wanted to help those inside, Link didn’t hesitate to order the soldiers to block the entrance as well.

After all… food was there, the caves weren’t going to run out of oxygen considering most of it was provided by algae anyway and… well, if they could indeed swim despite not living in the water…

The last thing he wanted was an army of monsters invading the still peaceful city… right?

_ Kid? _

He blinked, that was another Link talking, wasn’t it? Oh… he was sinking again, wasn’t he? That didn’t matter, probably, he was just so… so tired.

_ Kid? _

This Link felt like distant worlds, shadows, the eternal search for a love lost both in time and space… but he had no energies to listen. He was tired, Mipha was tired, he could just… use a short nap. 

Ah, why were those zora approaching him with such worried faces anyway

\- - -

The first thing Link perceived after a dreamless sleep was a sensation that started to feel familiar, the sharp feeling of waking up after being hit by a hinox.. What immediately followed as soon as he regained consciousness was pain in every single part of his body and he let out a loud growl as he attempted to stir underwater.

Mipha… Mipha wasn’t there, was she? Nope, she probably used all her powers and was recharging and she absolutely deserved it. Right? What happened again?

He almost sobbed in his attempt to get up only to find hands gently keeping him down. Well, he wasn’t going to fight it, really, he could barely move. Blue eyes slowly opened only to find a whole group of zora looking at him, Nasan being one of them.

_ ‘Sir, you’re awake! ' _What? Oh, he probably passed out when the adrenaline started to wear off. For a short, blissful moment he forgot about the whole mold thing _ ‘We were so worried, you’ve been asleep for three days’ _.

Three days? Three days?!? He slapped the medic’s hands away and forced himself in a vertical position in the room. From the decorations on the wall he could tell he was in one of the healing pools he had been shown. But why? He only had a scratch… didn’t he?

But then why was his whole body covered in bandages?

_ ‘Sir, please, you lost a lot of blood.’ _

He… he didn’t see the rest of his wounds? Link felt Mipha’s powers working as much as they could but he couldn’t remember any hit beside the first bite.

_ ‘When? How?’ _

_ ‘We were hoping you could tell us, the soldiers reported you were already bleeding by the time you left the eastern caves.’ _

He was wounded and he didn’t even notice. How much of what he saw was real, then? The bite mark, that he could still feel, and something definitely found its way under its skin but...

_ ‘Was… anything behind me?’ _

_ ‘We’re not sure, sir, we proceeded to seal the doors by your instruction but your men saw nothing. We were awaiting your-’ _

_ ‘Did I manage to take samples back?’ _

_ ‘Yes sir. Not as many as we hoped but-’ _

_ ‘Call everyone, I need to discuss with you all.’ _

_ ‘With all the respect, you should rest at least for the rest of the day.’ _

_ ‘We don’t have time.’ _

Not all he saw was real, probably, but the pain he could feel was enough to know it wasn’t all in his head either. And if there was any chance for a zora to… he didn’t want them to… he didn’t want _ him _ to...

Link raised shaking hands once more, now spelling a name letter by letter.

_ ‘Sidon?’ _

_ ‘The prince is feeling better, sir.’ _

He gasped looking at the unknown woman. It wasn’t a lie, was it?

_ ‘Keeping him underwater was an effective treatment. He’s still not completely lucid but our prince started accepting food and seems to be aware he’s being contained for his own good.’ _

That was an improvement.

_ ‘He seems almost normal but we know he’s still not fully himself because he alternates moments of lucidity to… extremely awkward questions.’ _

Link tilted his head in confusion… only to immediately regret it as his body twisted in pain.

_ ‘He keeps asking when his sister will visit.’ _ Link’s heart sunk at that ‘ _ And he asks the same about his daughter… somehow?’ _

His w… oh.

_ 'That may be my fault’ _ He didn’t intend to do anything wrong not to fool the prince, of course, but… _ ‘We failed to communicate last time I visited and when he asked me who the child was there has been a misunderstanding. I…’ _ he waved his hand ‘ _ I think he’s referring to the little girl who was with me’ _

The medics exchanged a worried look.

_ ‘Sir, are you aware the child and her brother will be delivered to her surviving family as soon as she’s identified?’ _

_ ‘Of course I am’ _ he replied rolling his eyes _‘But fuck it, if it can give him peace he can think whatever he wants for now!'_

_ ‘Language, please!’ _

Ah, zora, were they always so formal underwater? He missed Kodah and Rivan’s more friendly attitude. Then again, that was pretty much how he behaved back in Zelda’s castle…

_ ‘Sorry. I’m just… everything hurts right now, I guess it’s to be expected considering something tried to bite my head off.’ _

There was a tense moment between the others as he pointed at his neck and it was only after a long moment that Nasan decided to float closer, almost unsure on what to say.

_ ‘That’s… understandable.’ _ Okay, it was clear they weren’t telling him something, they were all terrible actors _ ‘May we suggest you to rest further?’ _

He shook his head, they already lost three days and he wasn’t going to waste more time.

_ ‘As I said, gather everyone once more, I want a full report on anything you could find on those samples and I need to… explain what happened there.’ _

_ ‘A meeting will be ready in two hours, sir.’ _

_‘Make it one and half.’_ he sighed ignoring how his whole body protested at every single movement and moved back to the surface, as soon as he left the healing pool to cross the small bubble of air that separated it from the rest of the hospital the full weight of his limbs almost crushed him down. Medics immediately followed after, ready to assist, but he pushed them back.

_‘I’m fine. I’m fine.’ _He wasn’t _‘I am just incredibly stiff. Now… since I will have a bit of free time before everyone is here, I want to see the Prince.’_

\- - -

Sidon was actually sitting near the door by the time he finally managed to reach the greenhouse, followed by nurse Humah this time. Nasan wasn’t apparently welcome in that place, the prince became agitated whenever the green zora was present with the rest of the medical staff and after few attempts they all agreed he could avoid service in that area.

Honestly? Link didn’t care, it was just annoying how somehow they refused to leave him alone for now but he didn’t care too much considering no one protested when he moved to see his beloved friend.

The way Sidon’s eyes seemed to lit as soon as he noticed him, the smile on his face, that was a painkiller more effective than any weird herbal concoction he had been offered so far.

_ ‘Hey, big kid.’ _

_ ‘You’re back! You didn’t leave again!’ _

Ah… he was talking again! His movements were still clumsy, Link knew he could normally speak flawlessly in sign language but any improvement was welcome.

_ ‘I’m never going to leave you, big idiot. You had me so worried.’ _He approached, carefully keeping enough distance not to be attacked again but still getting as close as possible.

The prince’s smile grew wider for a moment then he frowned, apparently taking notice of the numerous bandages that covered Link’s body, his pupils almost disappearing when he saw the one around his neck.

_ ‘Yeah, you were right, I should have used your present.’ _

He seemed absolutely distraught for a moment, words eluding him once more, then he brought both hands to his own silver collar, stopping there for a moment. Was he…

_ ‘Big boy, it’s too large for me’ _ It was mostly a joke but, really, him wearing that would have been a ridiculous sight. Sidon only nodded taking it apparently as a serious consideration and in a moment he was messing with his own bracelet instead.

_ ‘Oh- no, I will ask the soldiers to-’ _ The prince ignored him as he offered the silver ornament through the bars, a more than determined expression on his face. Okay, he rejected his attempts to give him an armor once and look where it took him…

Slowly, carefully, he reached forward taking the piece of jewelry from his hands and closing its locks around his neck.

_ ‘Happy now?’ _

By the look on his face he could only assume the answer was yes, Sidon was smiling like Hylia herself just descended in front of him carrying a giant bag of puppies. Or manta rays, those were the equivalent of dogs and horses for zora, right?

_ ‘Very’ _

_ ‘Good.’ _

They just stood there in silence for a long, long moment. Link relieved because Sidon was clearly returning to himself and the prince… looking absolutely elated as he stared at the ornament around the golden zora’s neck.

The knight couldn’t help but chuckle, was it really so important for him that he was finally wearing proper zora ‘clothes’? He was never going to understand them… but if Sidon was happy so was Link.

_ ‘Can I see the baby again?’ _

Right… that little problem. Oh, well…

_ ‘Once you’re finally better I’ll take you to her.’ _

_ ‘Promise?’ _

_ ‘Promise.’ _

A delicate sound behind them informed him his time was over and Link sighed, as much as he wanted to stay there his duties came first.

_ ‘I have work to do. You be a good boy, eat a lot and rest well, okay?’ _

_ ‘You try not to die, I don’t want to see you come back with even more wounds.’ _

Link nodded and, against his better judgement he floated closer, his hand passing through the bars to nuzzle the prince’s head. He was going to solve this situation, for him.

_ ‘See you soon, kid.’ _

_ ‘Not a kid.’ _

_ ‘Whatever you say, my friend.’ _

He grinned before floating away. The knight didn’t really feel like standing between a lot of people once more but… there was a lot to address and he also needed to understand what happened during the three days he had been out of the games.

\- - -

Link was prepared to be more or less at the center of the attention when he reached the room, the prince put him in command and he proceeded to sleep for three days straight after almost losing his life in a battle he couldn’t even remember properly… he wasn’t prepared to see everyone drop what they were holding and turn to look at him like he just walked in with a second head on his shoulders.

He could understand it from people who didn’t see him earlier, he did look like trash at the moment, but the medics who helped him recover… why were they also so surprised? And flustered?

_ ‘What?’ _

_ ‘Sir, are you’re wearing the prince’s regalia?’ _

Yes? Was that… a bad thing? He shrugged, even if a nurse was with him the last thing he wanted was to cause a diplomatic incident with people assuming he stole jewelry from the only heir to the throne.

_ ‘He asked me multiple times before to get proper protection for my neck and considering what happened in that cave I couldn’t exactly say no this time when he offered.’ _

The presents nervously glanced to each and it was Nasan, who probably already had enough confidence with Link, who finally dared to speak.

_ ‘My lord, I know you’re not familiar with our costumes but gifting jewelry is very… intimate in our culture.’ _

_ ‘Not in mine.’ _ It was only partially true, he was completely aware wearing another man’s gift was wrong but there were more relevant problems to worry about, it wasn’t like he did it just because he wanted to _ ‘And if you can provide me a proper collar as armor I wouldn’t hesitate to give this one back.’ _

_ ‘Sir, you can’t.’ _ He blinked. What kind of weird tradition did he step on now? _ ‘You put on his regalia, that’s…’ _ inappropriate? He would live with that, he already did enough things that weren’t proper by their standards. _ ‘I think I speak for everyone when I say you should not take it off, it would be incredibly rude, but at the same time you should probably cover it with a scarf or a cravat until our prince is feeling better and can… explain.’ _

Okay, he could hide armor under a scarf, that worked for him. He sighed shaking his head and floating to the table, there were more important things to discuss than zora etiquette anyway.

_ ‘So… let’s get started.’ _

\- - -

Hoten had been a true angel and apparently spent the past three days gathering all the requests for vacations the guard received in the last month and even made sure to make a list including zoras who covered other roles. 

Turns out at least forty zora were currently out of the city to ‘fish’ and no one worried because it was a rather normal occurrence for people to… _ get lost in the moment while enjoying one of the best zora activities _ and returning late.

That was way too many people for comfort.

They all agreed any person who presented a request but still was in the city was to be examined with at least two guards present for safety and that efforts were to be coordinated with the surface, if was the only way to find out if anyone attempted to return but couldn’t due to the quarantine.

_ ‘I will need to speak with the guards above, I am clearly contaminated so I cannot leave the water for too long and I can’t risk spreading this further but I need to check the East Reservoir. Meaning I will require the inn’s bathtub and a few zora strong enough to carry me while I’m in water.’ _

_ ‘Excuse me?’ _

_ ‘From what I’ve been able to gather there was already a smaller dam before the prince’s Grandfather had Rutala’s built to collect even more water. It’s merely a hunch but I do hope to find something more searching there. We cannot open the door from the caves, perhaps we can find where it leads if we seek from the other side.’ _

There was a moment of silence and the head of the guards spoke again, this time holding her chin up.

_ ‘We will organize it but you will not go alone, it doesn’t matter if it will take us time to bring everyone to the Reservoir but-’ _

_ ‘I work alone.’ _

_ ‘Sir, I cannot let you go. Not in your condition.’ _

_ ‘I am in charge-’ _

_ ‘Yes you are but it would be irresponsible from me to let you know after what transpired during your last solo trip’ _

He groaned leaning his crest against the table for a moment, cutting eventual signs in his directions out as he took a deep breath. Link knew things had been a mess, it had been a real shock finding out that every wound he found on his body beside the bite against the neck had been self inflicted, this was why his claws had been trimmed short. It was just so… weird and unsettling, it was like he fought himself or something.

And that was why what he reported couldn’t be completely trusted even if everyone agreed ‘something’ managed to bite him. Hopefully something now contained in the sealed tunnels.

_ ‘That was out of water, I will be immersed this time and I heal faster-’ _Which… wasn’t completely true, both Mipha and Revali were still absent in his chest, probably recovering from the constant calling _‘I will be fine’_

_ ‘Please don’t force me to swim to the surface to ask the king himself for the permission of sending my men with you.’ _

Right, the King could override any order of his and if Dorephan was anything like Zelda he was going to tell Link he needed to take better care of himself and not only send two guards with him but six.

_ ‘Fine. I don’t want more than three men, thought, and they better be aware their only role will be carrying torches for me.’ _

_ ‘As long as you don’t mind them carrying their own weapons, sir.’ _

He raised his hands up, that wasn’t exactly a battle he could win, was it? Oh how he wished to go back to his little hut, there were so many things he left there that were probably rotting like now, after all he was planning to return by the end of the day.

Not to mention his fermenting jars probably exploded by now without him there to release the building gas inside, Link certainly picked the perfect time to starting with that kind of experiments, who knew what kind of horror awaited him to be cleaned at his return.  
  
_ ‘You know what? You win. Pick your three best men by tomorrow morning-’ _ it wasn’t a lot of time considering they were in the middle of the night but he was already being generous there _ ‘-and find me at the Indigo Palace at Dawn, it’s time to put on our explorer’s hats.’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it. See you next week for the next chapter, it'll probably be out by wednesday.


	10. A family reunion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what I'm doing anymore, send help. Also kind of a slow chapter, I apologize in advance but it was needed to set a few things.
> 
> I'm also updating this on a hurry before going on a 2 hours trip to recover my house's house keys, why do I have the brain of a monkey and keep forgetting my stuff behind?

After resting for three whole days Link felt absolutely restless, he kept moving back and forth between the palace’s chambers to double check on everything and it was a relief when the rest of the staff finally decided it was better to leave him wander alone. He... Link needed some time for himself.

The man didn't ask to be put in charge, he didn't even want to come to the Domain to begin with but there he was and Link couldn't really step away when people needed him, could he? It didn't matter if his whole body was aching nor if his head was still spinning, this wasn't much different from how things were back in the days of his journey against Ganon: if he was needed then he had to be ready to step in and put himself after everyone else.

He still promised to wait at least until dawn before saying hello to the city above and begging Kodah to remove part of her inn's furniture so him and the men chosen by Hoten could reach the East Reservoir- meaning he had to wait. Link visited the sleeping children, learnt how most of the medicines for the underworld were stored in a dense clay-like state to be applied on skin when needed and kept often in dry bubbles of air, and tried to keep himself busy after being allowed to pick a spear and a proper armor for the expedition.

It was.... kind of weird how everyone was basically adamant in asking him not to remove the collar Sidon gave him and in all honesty he didn't like that but... he couldn't really blame his poor, probably hallucinating brother, could he? Who knew what Sidon was seeing right now if he really thought the kid was his , he wasn't probably even himself when he put Link in charge.

Goddess, he couldn't get rid of the itch on his gills, oh how he wished for Mipha to be back. He felt Revali's spirit return, the rito probably had his hard time as well, but still no traces of his promised zora.

He let out a sigh floating stomach up in one of the small isolated chambers of the palace, he couldn't really rest after three days of sleep, could he? Even if his body clearly still begged for more time to heal he just... couldn't. He had been lucky, Daruk and Mipha probably prevented him from hurting himself too much and between Revali and the past heroes telling him to run he somehow managed to avoid permanent damage but... who knew how many zora were still seeing things that weren't real and reacting accordingly? 

Link shook his head, worrying too much wasn't going to help anyone, not him nor the prince who was still trapped in the greenhouse, he could only get ready to look for clues where he could still reach, whatever bit him near the large door was still lurking there and he wasn't in the condition to face more hallucinations. He needed... he needed to keep himself immersed in water, that was the single most important thing.

Right?

Right. But what if the issue couldn't be resolved there? Perhaps it was Worth trying to sneak on the surface and see how long it'd take there, in a safe environment, for the parasite to take control.

He could... probably handle it. He was the hero of Hyrule after all...

Goddess his head felt so heavy, perhaps it had been a bad idea to step out the healing pools so soon, his dizziness was probably tied to his blood loss.

"You should go eat something, your stomach has been empty for three days."

"I'm fine, Zelda, I'm fine..."

That woman always worried so much for him, even when it wasn't necessary. It wasn't the first time the warrior had been pushed to his limits and he knew how much he could take. 

"I'm just saying you don't look that great."

Link shook his head before attempting to curve his lips in a reassuring smile, he had duties toward... toward... people. And he couldn't sit down and let others handle his problems, people were probably still starving out there and he couldn't take... uh... fishes from them? Were they near a river? 

As soon as he tried to look around he felt his queen's hands against his cheeks, she pulled him closer pushing their foreheads together and forcing him to look at her in the eyes. Oh, Hylia, she seemed upset, what did he do this time?

"I. Am. Fine."

"No you're not." She sighed slipping her fingers between his long, blonde hair in a gesture that had become familiar for them "Link. I'm worried. And disappointed." It felt like a slap, the hylian closed his eyes trying to hide at least in part his shame- "But we can fix this, my friend. Together."

The knight replied with a gentle nod, while he considered himself intelligent and resourceful Zelda had always been the smarter one between them and if she said she knew how to handle the situation, whatever it was, he had to believe her, right?

"You have me, my queen, as always."

"Good. Come, my knight."

He smiled as she parted from him, offering Link her hand and a warm smile. He was going to follow her in hell if necessary and... and... yes, that was all. He put his faith in her following her steps until they reached the castle's library. 

"I need to finish something, will you wait for me?"

"Of course, my queen."

Link was mid bow when another voice from behind startled him. What? Weren't they alone in the castle? Link blinked, suddenly turning and finding himself in front of a zora. Wait, what was she doing so far away from the Domain? And why was she so familiar?

His lips parted as he recognized her. Mipha. But she was dead, wasn't she? Then again, didn't he leave the castle not too long ago? Link massaged his temples, his head was hurting so much right now and while the red zora was clearly talking to him he couldn't really make out any word, it was all a weird gibberish.

"I don't... understand."

But he knew she meant protection, she meant safety in a way Zelda didn't... not here, not now.

"You shouldn't listen to her."

"But, Zelda, she's my... almost wife, I think?"

"Oh, please, we both know that's not true."

But it was true, even if he felt he would have accepted the armor out of duty, out of the need to prove... something. Another stabbing pain to the head forced him to close his eyes, something was off there. He was… he was…

“Nothing of this is real, Link… look at yourself. You’re hylian again, you’re talking and you’re back in the castle… we both know that’s not how things should be.”

Link opened his eyes wide open in horror, of course it had to be a dream. Oh, Hylia, was he hallucinating? Considering he was now standing in the middle of a forest in company only of his old fiancè.

“What… is happening?”

“You should tell me.”

Right. What could he see? He wasn’t familiar with the place they were in yet he could feel an incredible sense of nostalgia just being there. The mist hiding everything more distant than a couple of steps reminded him of the korok forest but Link could tell it wasn’t the same place. It was darker, lonelier, colder and… home.

He was holding Mipha’s hands between his and he could see his golden scales once more, he was wearing a green tunic similar to the one he received from the monks but made for a zora and… and…

Goddess, he was breathing with his lungs.

“Yes, you’re out of water. You crawled in one of the parting rooms like my brother did.”

That wasn’t good, without Mipha’s power he wasn’t immune to anything, what if someone dared to walk too close and he attacked them? He needed… he needed to find his way back to-

“Wait.”

Link turned to look at her with an heavy heart, he couldn’t allow himself to fall for this kind of sights. A vision of his precious Zelda brought him there and now a vision of one of his biggest regrets was trying to keep him out of water, he needed to-

“Listen, Link.” She felt incredibly real when he tried to pull back, Mipha was even stronger than him somehow because he couldn’t free his hands “There is a reason I’m allowing this to grow on you-” Why was she even confessing? Link attempted to take another step back but somehow couldn’t move away. “-there are some people you need to meet but they can’t unless you’re close enough to the veil. Do you know where we are?”

How was he supposed to know? Link shook his head, it all suddenly felt so hopeless. In his desire to be by himself he just put everyone in danger. A sob escaped his lips, father had been right in his disappointment, he couldn’t even help his best friend. People who doubted his skills were right as well, he failed everyone in the past century and the only reason Ganon was defeated was… Zelda. She was the one who gave him the bow, she was the one who not only saved his life but also channeled her divine powers to seal the beast away once more.

And now… now he wasn’t only useless. he was even a ticking bomb as the hallucinations took over. _ Maybe I'd be better off dead _ he told himself and he saw for a second the silhouette of an unfamiliar knight telling him the same. Who… it didn’t matter that person was right. 

If only… if only they didn’t clip his claws… it would have been so easy just to escape the situation, to put an end to it all.

“I know, I know, he wants you to feel terrible but….” He could feel her gentle touch against his shoulders, her lips brush against his cheek “I believe in you. And Sidon does too.”

What was the point, thought? Those were only more people who were going to be disappointed or hurt by him, his weakness almost killed everyone in Hyrule during the battle at Fort Hateno, people put their trust in him and he couldn’t even… even...

“I love you.”

Link almost jumped back at her words only to hit something with his shoulders, eyes wide open and filled with fear and shame. He parted his lips to answer but no words came out, he was supposed to return her feelings, that was the right thing to do and since he was probably dying anyway.

When he finally found his voice again, thought, it wasn’t a positive answer what left his mouth.

“I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to be.”

“But-”

She shook her head, silver jewelry dancing and chiming with her movements. Her gentle smile was something to die for and Link couldn’t help but feeling guilt over his selfishness, he knew his old self loved her but even then it was-

“You are a bit broken, a bit hurt, but it’s nothing that can’t be put back together. I know you can’t feel the same love for me I have for you and it’s okay, just know I am with you. I will always be with you as long as you’ll have me.”

It was like a big weight had been lifted from his chest, of course she’d understand, after all she had always been so kind. A fierce warrior, a passionate leader and, with Daruk, the kindest of his friends. Link’s head tail lowered touching the ground and the warrior took in a deep breath, even if he couldn’t return her feelings completely she was still there.

“I-”

“And, really, are you wasting your only chance to talk being all sad like this?” Her lips curved in a complicit smile and she tilted her head “Come on, just one word. Just… say it.”

Link felt confused for a good moment as he studied her, what was she… oh. He felt his tail burn in embarrassment and coughed while looking away.

“Aw, you’re a banana!”

“Excuse me?”

“You pay so much attentions to others yet you spent months as a yellow eel without realizing you don’t blush on your face like most of us, you get all those lovely black dots on your head tail.”

Wait, really? As he moved that part of his body forward to look at it, feeling incredibly self conscious. She was right, that explained why at times Sidon stopped to stare at it and- oh, that was horrible and even more easy to spot than other zora’s scales. Great, the more he stared at that blatant display of his own feelings the more his black spots became evident.

“How awful…”

She replied with a chuckle, clearly amused by his reaction. 

“That, my dear, is what a banana eel looks like. I guess you’re paying your price for eating like a Yiga for so many years.”

“Excuse me, Mighty bananas are an excellent source of-”

“I know you use them to fight better, you doofus. Anyway, They will be here soon and I think I need to step in my big sister shoes with you so… come on, am I embarrassing you enough? You know you want to yell at least once in your life. Before they come.”

“Who is coming?”  
  
“You will see but before that… come ooooon.”

Her tail wagged in a way so similar to Sidon when he was happy it almost hurt. Why was his heart aching so much? He wanted.. he wanted…

“Just say it with me, just once.”

Blue eyes met her golden ones and a little guilty smile found its way on his lips.

“I shouldn’t-”  
  
“Oh, come on, who can hear us here? We’re literally in your mind!”

Right. Link big his lips as he felt her nudging against his crest. They were both really short, weren’t they?  
  
“Hey, I heard that. Should I remind you I’m half ghost and half hallucination here?”  
  
“You feel quite real to me.”  
  
“Good. Now…”  
  
The warrior bit his lips once more and his tail wagged just a tiny bit, both took in a deep breath and the loud ‘fuck’ that resonated in the forest had birds and rabbits run away in panic. While he knew it was all just inside his mind it felt… so good.

They both stood there for a moment, chuckling as he felt his nerves finally relax. He still didn’t know how to get out of…. this dream of sort but somehow that feeling of hopelessness had started to fade.

“Good. And just in time.” she caressed his cheek once more “I… I was really happy to see you one last time but now your guide is here.” He tilted his head, confused “Once you wake up I will be with you, we just… needed to bring you closer to the veil for you to see.”

His lips moved and he attempted to ask what he was supposed to see but no voice came out, the usual rasp sound followed instead as he failed to articulate any sound. It was… him again, wasn’t it? Mipha offered an understanding smile and nodded in his direction, pointing at something behind his back. 

He turned just a little only to find a weird looking wolf sitting not too distant from him, It was a weird animal, strongly reminding him of a wasteland coyote but larger in size and with a hint of green in his fur on the tail and his back and.... the white pattern on his head was too strange to feel natural. Then again the beautiful blue eyes that were pointed on him spoke of an intelligence and wisdom that didn’t match a normal animal’s.

A glance behind himself confirmed Link he was alone with the wolf now. A wolf that felt familiar even if he had never seen it before, like the place he was in and…

Oh…

_ ‘You’re me. _’ he only managed to sign, lips slightly parted and tail suddenly as low as possible.

The creature almost seemed to smile as he got up, chains tied to one of his paws making a rattling sound and for a second stealing Link’s attention. He watched as the animal turned and started walking through the mist.

He immediately followed.

There was no wind to show him the way, he had to trust his… ancestor? They weren’t probably related by blood yet he felt a deep connection with him. They proceeded in silence side by side and for what felt like an eternity there was no sound beside their steps and the breathing of Link’s companion.

When he finally reached a large opening his jaw dropped.

They weren’t alone. 

Sitting in the middle of the patch of grass was the wolf, sure, but all around them he could see other… Links. They were people of all genders and species, some of them were older and others were barely kid, and all of them were dressed in that green tunic that started to feel way too familiar.

They were standing there, on the edge of the forest and he couldn’t shake the feeling that if he dared to move in their direction they would just disappear in a second, like breath on a mirror, just… gone.

Link stopped only a few steps from the animal that guided him there, waiting for an explanation, something, only to notice his accordion had been brought there as well and was now lying at his feet. What in the name of Hylia…

None came, he could see some of the heroes sticking out more from the crowd but it was just him, his accordion and the wolf. Who seemed to smile once more before tilting his head and howling.

It took Link a moment to process what was happening, the wolf was singing for him, each time his head tilted differently the note of his call changed. Eleven notes, repeated over and over as the warrior waited.

_ Si, La, Fa… Si, La, Fa… _

Eleven notes he somehow knew by heart even if it was the first time Link heard that melody.

_ Si, La, Mi, Re, Mi… _

He somehow knew he needed to play with him, yet as soon as he grabbed his instrument his hands froze as a strong sense of nausea started to build up in his stomach. No, he couldn’t possibly join this, it was wrong, he needed to leave, he needed to escape that place.

The warrior was about to turn and run away when a gentle arm found its way around his shoulders. It was one of the other heroes, an adult hylian with the saddest but kindest smile he had ever seen, who silently pushed him a little forward.

Another Link approached, this one was young and somehow he knew what it meant: he died too soon yet he was there, standing between the champions who completed their life goal holding... the Harp of Ages? How did he even know what that instrument was? As the gentle old man at his other side took out an ocarina from his vest he recognized that as well, it was -the- ocarina, another held an instrument he recognized as the Full Moon Cello…

But all that it wasn’t his knowledge, was it?

It was _ theirs _, Link was merely borrowing it for the moment to understand better, to know his fear was irrational and, like Sidon, probably tied to the creature in his head telling him what to do. Notes joined the wolf’s howls, some voices raised as well from the forest itself and Link’s hands started moving accordingly.

_Day to night, dark to light, Fall the sands of time. _

_ Let the years like the gears Of a clock unwind _

And it suddenly wasn’t just eleven notes, it was a whole melody in his head and he recognized it. It wasn’t just music, it was an ancient spell that came from a distant land, something he wasn’t supposed to know yet…

_ In your mind walk through time Back to better days. _

_ Memories, like a dream, Wash your tears away _

Yet it was_ their _song, a grim reminder of how once you picked the sword you accepted to serve for the rest of your life no matter how difficult the path would be and a promise that better days would come. That was… their graveyard, wasn’t it? The chosen ones weren’t allowed to return to Hylia in the afterlife, they kept watching over a world where new heroes were born and tragedy kept repeating itself in each cycle.

Yet there was serenity, it was like being part of a family, there was… it was _ home. _ It wasn’t his place _ yet _ but it still felt like a natural extension of his soul. Wherever his body was right now in the real world it was irrelevant, his mind was right where it was supposed to be.

_ Like a star in the sky darkness can't reach you. _

_ Light the night, joy is light 'til the new dawn. _

And it was true, if in the past few days- no, years, he had been lost, even if he had been sick in the past few days he couldn’t help but believe things would be fine in the end. He needed to have faith like he did when he charged against Ganon, with or without Mipha and the other champions he was going to fight.

He didn’t like to be in charge once more, not even knowing Sidon probably didn’t know what he was doing when he picked him, but Link wasn’t going to step away. He was going to find out what was causing the problems in the Domain and fix everything.

After that… he was going to find his path again, probably choosing the isolation of the Plateau this time, but not before being certain his best friend was safe.

_ Cast away your old face Full of gloom and spite. _

_ With this mask I will ask To borrow your light. _

In the middle of that concert he couldn’t stop to ask if they were the one who paid for his mask, he knew the song didn’t really belong to him but it had been crafted for the fairy boy -fairy grandpa- at his side, still…

It didn’t matter. the words worked for him as well and, sweet Hylia, he could feel the magic of the song reach deep inside him and dissipate the clouds in it. He widened his eyes, hands still playing with the buttons of his instrument as he followed the others, Link knew what this song was for: it healed his soul, his mind, and one day it was going to give him peace.

And it was going to keep him grounded, no matter what.

_ Once the years still your fears, time will seal your fate. _

He could bet the wolf winked in his direction at that part, but whatever he wanted to ask, whatever he wanted to say, his mind was feeling sharp again and he could feel like a fish reeled out of water as the forest started to fray at the edges.

_ Will the curse be reversed before it's too late? _

No other words reached him, not of the song at least, the whole area started fading around him and one by one all the ghosts of the past heroes dissipated like mist. The last person to vanish was the wolf, in what was now a sea of light the creature approached one last time, its muzzle gently nudging against the zora’s legs.

“For what it’s worth, we put our faith in you. If you need a push, we’ll be right there behind you.”

And then he was alone again.

Link welcomed the unpleasant sting on his gills that let him know Mipha was back and he took his time to rest against the wall, he was hiding in a corner in a way not too different than how they found Sidon just days earlier but he could tell his mind was clear again. 

Even if his accordion didn’t follow him in the real world he could still hum the song in his head, even if he could still feel something attempting to crawl inside him he had now a spell to stop it. He grinned widely before getting up, his body still felt weak after all that happened but Link felt full of energies.

A small splash informed him someone else was now around and he turned to look at three nurses that were now walking out of water with restraining tools. Oh… oh dear, they probably found him earlier and assumed he was zoning out like their prince.

_ ‘I’m fine! Don’t expose yourself!’ _

They seemed surprised but quickly returned the lower half of their bodies in water, at least to protect their breathing system.

‘My healing system kicked back in, I’ll return underwater immediately.’ One of them let out a sigh of relief, after all they weren’t fighters like him_ ‘But before that one quick question.’ _

They tilted their head, giving him full attention.

_ ‘Do you have any instrument that can be played underwater?’ _

\- - -

It was a disappointment finding out the zora had basically no musical culture, there were few instruments back in the days but when they fully dedicated themselves to military training and religion they slowly abandoned that branch of art preferring choirs on the surface and sculpture underwater.

And Link wasn't going to let the prince out of his cell just to try to play him some music, especially considering his accordion was still in his little hut and he didn't know if any of the people living in the city above had anything he could use.

_ If I had a voice it would have been so much easier, _ he found telling himself before floating down and leaning against a stone couch that had been offered to him.

After checking on him more than necessary he had finally been allowed to move around the Palace once more, yet he had been assigned Nasan for... well, they were officially babysitting the little child Link found, his presence seemed to calm her down a lot, but he knew it was an excuse to keep an eye on him.

Little teeth sinking in his skin once more informed him the kid decided once more to chew on him, one of the medics informed him his protective film had some painkiller attributes and it was probably really useful for a baby that was trying to push her gums back to uncover her adult teeth. He wasn't too pleased about that.

_ 'So...' _ The eyes of the green zora darted in his direction, as Link suspected he was paying more attention to his movements than he wanted to admit _ '... did you find out her name?' _

The other shook his head, accepting that attempt of conversation.

_ 'The child is too small to sign and she doesn't know how to read either so our boards have been useless so far. It's already a blessing she's old enough to understand our words.' _

Link frowned, it was going to be problematic finding her family -what was left of it- if they couldn't even identify her and her brother. He tapped his chin, if written letters couldn't help and she was unable to talk or sign for now, perhaps... 

He turned, arms grabbing the child and forcing her on his lap, as distant as possible from his poor head tail. No, he wasn't going to let her have her way just because she had the most adorable pout ever, they needed to talk.

_ 'You understand me, don't you?' _

A nod as reply, of course she did, they already had a small discussion earlier. 

_ 'D o y o u u n d e r s t a n d l e t t e r b y l e t t e r?' _

Another nod and he grinned widely as Nasan approached, curiously studying their interaction.

_ 'I am going to spell all letters, one by one, can you stop me when I get to letters that are part of your name? Let's try to spell it out, mh?' _

Her eyes lit up as he slowly started moving his hand, signing the alphabet in front of them. Every time the kid thought he reached the correct letter she’d bump his hand with her crest to tell him to stop, Link would then ask for confirmation and restart from the beginning.

In five minutes both had a huge smile on their lips as Link raised his hands one last time to spell the two names he obtained.

_ “L o p h a’ _ the kid nodded with energy ‘ _ And her brother J a l i’ _

The little girl did a few flips in the water, emitting some small elated sounds before darting once more toward Link’s tail indirectly saying she didn’t really have anything else to say.

_ ‘Well, you got their names at least, now finding their family will be easier.’ _ he finally commented to the other zora… just to realize Nasan was staring at him like Link just insulted his mother or something.

_ ‘What?’ _

_ ‘I cannot believe we didn’t think of that.'_

The warrior couldn’t help but chuckle, that wasn’t really what he expected.

_ ‘Don’t think too much about it, you had plenty of work and I probably have a bit more experience as mute, not everyone outside the Domain understands sign language.’ _

And it had been a pain on Death Mountain where he couldn’t even write on paper to help himself. Not that… he had remembered how to write and read for the longest time after leaving the Plateau but that was irrelevant.

_ ‘I see… Well, I’m sorry to hear that, sir.’ _ Link frowned in his direction and the green zora looked away for a second _ ‘Lulu. But…. thank you. And- I think we should take advantage of this moment of privacy to discuss… _’ He tapped his own collar and Link’s muscles tensed up, the way others stared at him didn’t pass exactly unnoticed and-

_ ‘We shall not. Whatever it means, whoever he thinks I am, your prince is not himself.’ _

_ ‘But-’ _

_ ‘I can assure you hallucinations can look quite real, I experienced it first hand before my system started fighting back. I gather it would be problematic if I took it off by myself and I accept that but trust me, as soon as Sidon is in his mind again he’ll be glad to remove it from me.’ _

He then shook his head, to be fair Sidon’s bracelet fit quite well as armor but if it meant anything more Link was definitely supposed to give it back. And, thinking about that… the zora moved in front of the chest that had been brought in the room taking a long, white scarf out of it.

Uh… it was certainly too long and fancy for his tastes but it was probably the only one they found large enough to be wrapped around his improvised collar. 

_ ‘Couldn’t you find something simpler?’ _

_ ‘With all the respect, it would be-’ _

He rolled his eyes, not even reading the end of the sentence and went to grab the trident and silver shield he had been provided- certainly not his first choice in terms of weapons but they were going to work in a way or another.

_ ‘There is still time.’ _

_ ‘I don’t feel like waiting much longer and the sooner I ask the innkeeper for her bathtub the better.’ _

And he wanted to swim a little to get his muscles in shape once more. Goddess, he was almost glad Hoten insisted to assign him guards, if he had to fight anything Link wasn’t really sure if he could face it at the moment. The fun of almost bleeding to death, uh?

_ ‘We already sent our soldiers to inform the city above of our plans. Si- Lulu, may I suggest you to spend the rest of your time relaxing as you can? I can understand the eagerness to solve problems but it will do no one any good if you faint out there.’ _

_ ‘I will not-’ _

_ ‘Lulu… I am not a medic but I’m still part of a medical staff, I know your body recovers faster than others but you almost died just few days ago and I can guarantee you your body isn’t in a good shape right now.’ _

_ ‘Fine.’ _

_ ‘So why don’t you take things slowly for a bit, allow yourself to recover at least until down and maybe, just maybe, visit the proper hospital area to get some food rich of iron?’ _

_ ‘F i n e’ _

_ ‘Good.’ _

They just stood there, staring at each other in silence until Link finally gave up, he was an adult yet the medics still felt the need to act like his parents. Preposterous.

Oh, well, he could have a bite or two and pay Sidon one last visit before leaving for the Reservoir.

\- - -

Link had no idea certain species of fish were specifically bred and raised for medical purposes but as soon as he was handed a special version of a hearty bass he knew he was glad those weren't the norm. While unorthodox he decided to use the zora approach to most smaller fishes after a first, unpleasant bite, he swallowed the little creature whole hoping to be able to ignore the taste.

Heck, even his elixirs made with random bugs and monster parts were certainly better. 

He was forced to take down three more, that was as much as his stomach could handle, and then moved out of the hospital rooms saying he really, really needed to see the prince one last time. And nobody seemed to question that.

With little effort he found his way to Sidon's prison once more, this time with Nasan following him from a distance and little Lopha still attached to his fin- after all he promised the prince he'd eventually bring her again and as long as the zora was behind bars it was a safe environment.

And, hey, whatever the other was seeing right now... he just wanted him to be happy in his little bubble, Link was quite positive meeting Zelda again was the beginning of a nightmare for him. Not because he didn't love or trust his queen, of course, but because life in the palace was... it wasn't for him.

If he could take a wild guess it was a common trait between 'Links' too, for the little he had seen all of them had an adventurer's look, the air of someone who traveled until the very end, and... he liked that. Perhaps he could truly venture outside Hyrule at some point, be true to the letter he left Sidon, that could be a real adventure.

But at the same time he had both Sidon and Zelda there, they were… in a way or another his family. A family he neglected, that was true, but still all Link had left. Would it really be okay to leave it all behind? Being unable to ask if they were fine or not? Probably not, as much as he required freedom now that he truly experienced it he also needed to know the few important people in his life were fine.

With a sigh he reached for his zora brother’s prison and waited until the figure of the prince appeared behind it. The way he immediately smiled as soon as he saw him warmed his heart, Link _ had _ to be a good brother and stick around for him… right?

After a moment he finally, carefully reached forward to touch the greenhouse’s bars, relieved when it was clear Sidon wasn’t going to swipe against him. As long as he was alone it was one thing, not to mention his body could take a hit, but with a baby munching on his tail- he couldn’t be completely careless.

_‘Hello, big kid.’_ he greeted the other before bringing his hands on what was keeping them apart, the prince only seemed delighted as he tried to squeeze his head through the metal to reach for him. Oh, poor poor Sidon, that wasn’t much different from when he was trying to move away from Mipha but couldn’t move away because he was already against a wall, was it?

As difficult as the bars made his task, the prince slowly slipped his hands around Link’s and offered him the most adoring smile. Good, whatever Sidon was seeing had to be nice. Heck, as soon as he noticed the blue zora attached to the warrior’s tail his smile grew even wider like Link just brought in the best gift in the world.

It was perhaps a bit painful to see him try to speak for a moment, not really realizing he couldn’t naturally talk underwater, but at least he seemed to notice that soon enough. Looking incredibly reluctant he let Link’s hands go and raised his to express himself.

_ ‘You’re back again! With our baby!’ _

If the first part almost amused the warrior, it was true he just checked on him a couple of hours earlier, the second was like a punch to the stomach. He stiffened, his fins flattened pressing against his body and he pushed back from Sidon’s prison with clear discomfort. Link knew the zora wasn’t seeing _ him _there and it was okay if thinking he had a baby was making his time in the greenhouse easier but… no. The simple idea of being associated with him in that context made Link incredibly uncomfortable.

He knew he told the others he didn’t mind assecondating Sidon’s hallucinations but… he wasn’t so sure about that anymore. It was already bad enough the prince had feelings for his hylian self-

_ You know, that’s the exact opposite of a problem- _ Well shut up fairy boy. Old man. Whatever.

In any case he couldn’t… no. As much as he loved kids they deserved a mom and a dad, whatever fantasy Sidon had in his mind had to be put to an end. Now.

_ ‘Your kid.’ _

Oh, great, he was officially the biggest idiot in history but how was he supposed to break his heart completely?

And the prince seemed genuinely offended for a minute, like Link just said something awful, then there was a blink of lucidity in his eyes. That alone made the warrior’s heart skip a beat in hope… only to have it crushed at his next words.

_ ‘I’m going too fast, am I not? Father warned me I risk to have you run away’ _ Uh… okay, Link didn’t know exactly how to answer that but it made no sense so of course he was probably still in his little world _ ‘but it’s all going so well, I just assumed-’ _ a pause _ ‘Things aren’t going well, are they? This isn’t my room, is it?’ _

Screw everything else, who cared if Link felt uneasy or if bringing the kid there felt like one of the biggest mistakes he did so far, that was… progress! He was so proud of his best friend now, hopefully that meant the infection was regressing. After returning from the East Reservoir he truly needed to bring one of the other infected zora to see if trapping them underwater could help, with enough information he could even try to get one of Lopha’s parents.

He didn’t count because Mipha was pushing the infection out of his system and because he now knew a little musical trick to keep his mind sharp but… if Sidon was starting to regain awareness of his surroundings then water wasn’t probably just preventing his illness to spread further.

Afraid of being underwater, you weird mold… thing? You better be.

_ ‘No, it’s not, but I promise we’re all working hard so you’ll be allowed to go home soon.’ _ Sidon frowned at that but at least he seemed to actually understand Link’s words _ ‘Can you tell me what you see?’ _

For a moment the prince seemed to struggle, like he didn’t want to share what was in his mind, then he sighed like he was resigning himself to it.

_ ‘I’m not the only one affected, am I?’ _ a nod was the only reply Link offered _ ‘I see… home. Somehow I can’t really leave even if I want to, I think the door it’s too small? But it makes no sense, it’s my room’s door it should be… large enough for me.’ _

That didn’t really match how aware of the bars Sidon had been a moment earlier but he could remember how he passed from his chamber to Hyrule’s castle to… that forest. The one that was going to be his final resting place. He bit his lips, returning his attention to the red zora who was apparently trying to find the right words once more.

_ ‘Dad needs me so I should… find a way out.’ _ As Link was raising his hands to tell him to focus, Sidon’s gaze moved on him again ‘ _ I see you, Link.’ _ For a brief moment the knight had to channel his strength not to turn around and flee but… of course he saw… Link. That was both terrible and…. Good, somehow. Nasan was there to confirm the prince didn’t, in fact, see _ Lulu the zora- _ but also bad because it made him feel so incredibly guilty and in the wrong. _ ‘And I see our child.’ _

_ ‘Okay-’ _ He didn’t want to listen to more of that for sure _ ‘Beside the happy family in your mind do you hear or see anything weird?’ _

Sidon made a grimace, shaking his head and trying to think.

_ ‘Not really, I just want to leave this room because I can’t breathe well, I want to be with you and little Y o k a-’ _Oh, wonderful, he named the kid as well. Whatever, at some point he was going to realize Lopha wasn’t his and already had a name and a family _‘Something wrong. Something… wrong. I can’t.. my head hurts if I try to… I think... it would be delightful if the three of us could go fish together in the Reservoir. Voltfin trout are spawning there this month and it translates in delicious caviar. We need to fix the bridge first, that’s for sure, but once we’re done with that… please, let’s go there together.’ _

Link frowned before turning to look at Nasan who had the same puzzled look on his face. There was no real bridge to cross to reach the Reservoir and he was quite sure he had never seen fish in that location, he always assumed it was due to Ruta’s presence but… all the missing people left to go and_ fish _. And now Sidon brought up that during his attempt to deliver information on something being off. Looking at how confused the prince seemed right now it probably took a toll share that, something he wasn’t probably supposed to say. A moment of silence followed as Sidon stared at his hands and Link immediately took distance from the bars as soon as the zora moved his attention back to him: that was the gaze of a feral creature ready to attack, he had been in the wild long enough not to recognize that.

Hell, he was quite certain he saw his lips twitch on the corners, almost like he was ready to snap in his direction.

_ ‘Visit’s over’ _ he only commented turning and floating toward the green zora who still waited in his little corner before proceeding in the corridors that left the little greenhouse ‘ _ I’m not that familiar with the Domain but there’s no fish in the Reservoir, right?’ _

_ ‘I can’t say I’ve ever been on the surface but when others discuss traveling for personal amusement they usually speak of lake Hylia or Nabi, I’ve never heard of going there of all places.’ _

‘_ Good.’ _

_ ‘Excuse me?’ _

_ ‘I don’t know what he was trying to tell us but it had to be important considering how his brain went blank as soon as his sentence was over.’ _

Link didn’t wait for a reply before starting to swim faster: he was going to leave the kid to one of the caretakers, demand a proper armor because he no longer cared if taking off Sidon’s bracelet meant offense or not and then head to the surface whether the others were ready or not.

\- - -

Swimming to the surface had been a pleasure, as much as he didn’t mind staying underwater he wasn’t used to rely only on his gills to breathe and the air present in the dry bubbles was stale and humid, it couldn’t compare to the fresh wind that embraced the Domain at dawn.

Link smiled enjoying the familiar yet refreshing experience as other heads appeared at his side, it was still dark but the soldiers were ready and he could hear movement above them meaning Kodah and the rest was probably finishing the preparations as well. Looking up he found Rivan, Muzu and even Dorephan himself on the bridge, apparently the strength of the king was required to raise a whole bathtub filled with water and a zora as well without proper tools.

There was just a bit of chitchat too coordinate the efforts, the knight couldn’t even take part of the conversation as sign language was incredibly inconvenient as he tried to keep his head out of water. A bit annoying perhaps but he had little to complain about when his ride was finally lowered near one of the pillars.

He turned to look at Hoten, she decided to be one of the three zora who were going to accompany him, and offered a nod before crawling inside it holding his breath and clamping his gills shut until he was once more well into water. Not many words were really exchanged, he was finally offered a proper set of armor and he put everything on beside the collar (He had been convinced to keep Sidon’s bracelet around his neck and cover it instead, Hylia only knew how badly he wanted to throw it away right now.) and he was on the go as the bathtub was carried on Dorephan’s back.

“You know, son, I was considering to start making more exercise but this isn’t what I had in mind...”

He couldn’t really reply but at least raised his hand out of the tub to pat the king’s shoulder in sign of solidarity. When he thought to visit the Domain he expected a few hours of company, not to be in charge of a whole operation to fight… whatever was lurking in the waters of the kingdom.

He waited in silence taking his time to enjoy the view of a rising sun as they climbed their way up the stairs that lead to the Reservoir, there was little to say to the soldiers following them even if he could feel Rivan and Gaddison’s eyes on him.

“Oh, by the way, I am not familiar with this Zonai tribe but I found someone who happens to know a bit about it. I thought you could exchange a few words with her as I carry up the rest of the men.”

Link blinked turning once more to look at the king’s back. Who did he even find? Traysi? She was the one who knew all rumors around Hyrule, the only other source of information was.... oh. Oh no. Oh no no no! He clamped the scales around his gills shut once more and climbed on the King’s back to look what awaited them and he had the confirmation his fears were correct.

Waiting for him in the same spot once Sidon did before the battle against Vah Ruta was now Zelda. Her hair were even shorter than he could remember, she wore a male military coat and she probably had to sneak around to be allowed to move without at least four guard escorting her as Link ordered all those months ago but… yes. The queen was waiting for him. In a royal guard uniform. Sweet Hylia, she looked beautiful in it.

And a single glance at her face, to how pissed she was, and he had no doubts: _ she knew _.

Before he could fully process how to handle the situation he was ungracefully thrown in the water of the Reservoir as the content of the bathtub was emptied in it. 

"Well, I will go pick Hoten and her men, I think you will find our little friend here quite... interesting."

He didn't like the way Dorephan smiled as he winked before leaving them alone, as he heard the woman's boots hitting the marble surface of the pier approaching Link slowly started to sink as guilt, shame and the lack of any good excuse or explanation started weighting on his shoulders. Did... did Beetle betray him? That horrible snitch, Link wasn't going to give him any energetic rhino beetle. EVER.

"I should kill you. Do you know how much I worried about you? You... you idiot!"

Link turned to face her, at least grateful the king and his men already left, after all they were hopefully still in the dark about his identity. Any attempt to move and say anything was stopped by a splash at his side and strong arms wrapping around his shoulders in a bone crushing hug.

"You're so lucky I'm just so fucking glad you're alive, you mad man."

He had to bite his own lips not to sob like an idiot, without even thinking he was already holding her back. It was so different from the queen he saw in his dreams, like Sidon she felt like _home_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah, small headcanon the reason we never had the third oracle game is because Oracle *died* at some point before we could get the game about Farore.


	11. Unpleasant surprises lurking in the dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Waring for: horror themes (or my attempt at it) and eventual minor character death. Fair warning I'm using songs with their own flavor since most of them had only gameplay uses... The reunion with Zelda is a bit cold, perhaps, but they're both 'duty first, feelings second' oriented.

While Link wanted to indulge himself in a heartfelt reunion, a bit selfish of him considering it was his fault they had been apart for months, both only indulged themselves in a couple of awkward cheek kisses and hugs before parting and, as they always did, focusing on the problem at hand first. 

The knight and his queen, putting feelings and emotions aside to focus on the important things as it had always been between them. She sat on the pier, damp clothes and all, as he spoke in the water, awkwardly keeping his elbows on the borders and feeling limited in his movements.

“I will be honest with you: I have only so many info to share, King Dorephan may believe I know more than I want to share but I am in the dark as well. What I hope to do here is to work with you to solve this mystery.”

Link replied with a nod, he traveled far and wide never really hearing anything about the lost tribe. He had their armor set, sure, and he visited their ruins but no one spoke about them… it was too much hoping to have information in the palace.

‘When I asked Impa for information she seemed even more evasive than usual-” big surprise he told himself “But I gather Sheikah and Zonai used to cooperate around ten thousand years ago. Where one could be found there would be the other, at least outside Faron, and I think they were some kind of monster tribe-”

Link’s tail twitched, a… monster tribe? Oh, he couldn’t really imagine the Sheikah cooperating with anything that wasn’t a cuccoo or one of the five main races of Hyrule.

“I know what you’re thinking but I am trying to put together bits of pieces here and there, they’ve barely been mentioned in the Old Hyrule Encyclopedia as ‘the lost, beast like, tribe’. A volume of my mother’s collection of rare books seems to imply they worshiped the three divine dragons and an artistic study to their iconography seems to suggest their iconography is fully dedicated at beast like creatures.”

_ ‘I can see why you’d suspect they’re worshiping dragons, the spring of courage is literally hidden inside a dragon shaped temple.’ _

Before she could reply Link squinted, suddenly remembering a detail of his last interaction with the… thing.

_ ‘I am not entirely sure if this is related or not but when I… fought something underwater-’ _

She frowned, her lips curving downward. Oh, Link knew her well enough to know she had been informed of how he almost killed himself that day. At least he could avoid unnecessary explanations.

_ ‘I heard a voice calling me Farosh. I assumed it was just my hallucinations pushing weird things in my head, mostly because I am a long yellow serpent right now and I did use Urbosa’s fury but… what if that voice was real?’ _

The queen pondered for a moment before shaking her head.

“Well, it’s hard to tell but either we find something in the Reservoir or I am coming underwater and I will find a way to break the door open to gather more clues.”

While he knew Zelda was stubborn and strong enough to do so if she truly wanted he couldn’t really see that happen.

_ ‘It takes me almost twenty minutes swimming to reach that destination, I doubt you could hold your breath for so long-’ _

“Diving bells, Link, I am having one brought to the Domain as we speak, I just… ran forward.”

Oh, right, those were… a thing. He couldn’t imagine himself trapped in one, it was already unpleasant enough when during his journey he had to stay in claustrophobic caves, having to rely on a small bubble of air for survival… no, thanks.

“Anyway, I asked Purah to… loan me her slates.” Wait, what? “I didn’t expect you to carry yours around here, not when everyone describes you as the wild, naked and mad hermit of the Domain.” Wasn’t that a wonderful reputation to have? “But I expect our friends to hide things from us. I didn’t even know for sure she had more than one but I sounded convincing enough and… you know…”

Zelda grinned in his direction and he couldn’t help but smile in return, the zora could only imagine how confident his friend was as she opened the doors of Purah’s laboratory to demand her _ more slates _. Oh, he loved his queen so much in moments like this: she could be incredibly kind and motherly with the right people, tolerant with most others but whenever she was on a ‘no bullshit’ mood she was a force to be feared.

“Anyway, here.” she handed him a slate that was way smaller than his own but incredibly brighter. It also had its own.. belt? “If you turn this rune on you will be in contact with my slate and I will be able to see anything you do, light permitting. Even between the slate and the luminous torches I don’t expect the bottom of the Reservoir to be too bright.”

He curiously studied it: no item stash nor proper rune beside the one that could keep him in contact with Zelda. At least his queen seemed a proper one, probably Purah’s personal one.

“On the Dam… we know the very first records of it come around ten thousand years ago, when the zora moved in the Domain, but the original one has been raised many times to increase its size. From what I’ve been able to gather it’s the deepest body of water of Hyrule. Pressure may be a problem but if you plan to dive to the bottom but if we assume it’s on level with the underwater caves… just try not to push yourself too hard. Come here-” she scooted closer, taking the smaller device from his hands and securing its belt around his wrist “Now… Dorephan will return soon and then we’ll no longer have privacy so- before we have to go back to be fully professional-”

Link rolled his eyes, of course they weren’t going to be casual around others, he had a disguise to keep. 

“You owe me months of sleep, countless meals for all the ones I skipped… and explanations.”

His tail flattened and Link tapped his fingers on the marble surface of the pier. How could he explain the past few months? He licked his lips, focusing and trying to gather the right words- there was no lying, not to her of all people.

_ ‘I…’ _ Link’s fingers twitched and he waved his hand midair like he couldn’t express himself properly, thankfully enough Zelda agreed to let him take his time _ ‘I didn’t realize how much living in the castle wasn’t for me.’ _

Even if he took another pause, there were no words from her.

_ ‘One morning I come to my office and there’s this… article about a mask hidden on what I thought was the Plateau and I told myself… why not taking a few hours off work? Turns out someone made sure I would find the mask and from what I understand I’ll be unable to take it off until I’m done fulfilling its purpose. Purpose I don’t really know, yet. I… suppose I was meant to be here to help the Domain, somehow?’ _

“That doesn’t explain why you didn’t contact me.”

His hands twitched once more, he almost replied he didn’t know how but… both knew it would have been a lie: he didn’t want to be found, if he truly wanted to meet the queen he would have found a way, guards or not guards. He just…

_ ‘I don’t know. _ ’ He finally admitted _ ‘I just… I was afraid, I guess? To lose this? I like this life: I have three horses now, I travel for fun and not for obligation, I get to see people treat me like a normal person and not just… the hero of Hyrule. I have my hut, my crafting tools, I am learning so many things without the slate-’ _

“You’re happier.”

His lips parted, his hands raised to deny it- only to stop midair as he finally admitted it with a nod.

_ ‘I am sorry. I know you must feel equally overwhelmed by responsibilities yet I was the one who ran away like a fool.’ _

“The difference is: I chose this life, you didn't.”

_ ‘I chose to serve you.’ _

“No. You were told to serve me, Link. I told you, i’ve been with you since you woke in the Shrine.” It was her time to hesitate, much to the zora’s surprise. “You weren’t even able to wear your shirt straight and my father’s ghost was already waiting for you, to teach you how to behave and what to do. And I couldn’t even say anything because I was too weak and we truly needed your help. After that I took you for granted and… that’s where we are now.”

He reached forward to hold her hand, it was just how things were supposed to be: he had been awakened to save the land and he fulfilled his duty, what followed was just… natural

_ ‘You are my queen.’ _

“You are my family.” The overwhelming sense of joy at Zelda’s words surprised him, a thin veil of tears clouded his vision and the zora was glad he was already wet enough for her not to notice it. “I should have known better, I should have spoken sooner.”

_‘You didn’t… Well, I should have said something as well. And I failed to be honest with you when it truly mattered, I can’t believe I should be thankful B e e d l e told you how to find me because… it’s a true relief knowing you’re at my side for this.’_

For a moment the queen’s expression had been of pure confusion then she simply blinked and nodded.

“Oh, yes, Beedle, he’s definitely the one who told me you were a zora. Anyway- I think I should go see if the king needs any help-”

He reached for her as she got up on her feet.

_ ‘Please remember to keep this a secret. I… don’t really want other people to know.’ _

“Right. As I said I should probably go now, this was a heartfelt reunion but we will need to put up an act, right? I’ll let them know I accidentally fell into water and… so who are the ones who will accompany you?”

Right, an act. He offered a serious nod in reply and tried to remember the names of the three zora coming with him.

_“H o t e n is one, you probably met her already. She’s quite stubborn and really efficient, I like her and she’s great in combat. There’s E r e, a porpoise picked because echolocation may be useful in a dark place, and last is T a l i, a sailfish picked for her speed.’_

“That sounds like a balanced team, that’s great.”

The knight offered her a small smile, while he didn’t like to expose them to danger it was a general good choice. He saw Zelda fidget, clearly ready to escape for whatever reason.

_ ‘Oh, and before you go-’ _

“Yes?”

_ ‘I kind of met all my past lives and they all shared with me a song that helps clearing a person’s mind. Trust me, it works… if you could somehow find me an accordion or a concertina that would be great, I’m positive it would do wonders for Sidon.’ _

She hesitated for a moment and finally agreed.

\- - -

The descent had been as unsettling as Link expected and where he expected to have sunlight reach deeper… it started to disappear after the first twenty meters of depth. By the time the special barometer they had been assigned told them they reached fifty meters they were already immersed in a complete dark, something unnatural considering from the little Link experimented light could still pass through at at least one hundred meters.

Luminous stone torches and jewelry was uncovered to make sure no one would accidentally collide against anything and Ere led the way with Link for a while, lowly emitting sounds that allowed him to see further. 

In all that there was absolutely no life: not a single fish moved around, no algae lived in the water even if considering how the water kept a warm temperature even going deeper… for reasons no one could truly understand, especially considering the location’s proximity with Lanayru. 

Letters on his device’s screen had Zelda suggest perhaps there was some kind of undiscovered and hidden lava flow passing its heat to the surrounding environment but, really, they were hardly there to focus on possible geological discoveries.

Each time they stopped to inspect the rock walls of the basin there was nothing relevant to be found, even if they felt like descending the surface kept darkening in color it was difficult being certain of it considering they were using blue tinted artificial lights to see.

it was after another stop that Link finally noticed… something. He was barely paying attention to the rock surface while allowing Zelda to take pictures from his wrist-slate when his eyes catched something in the distance, way below them.

_ ‘Cover all lights’ _he immediately signed before placing one hand against Ere’s lips to signal him to be silent. After a moment of hesitation all torches and jewels were hidden once more and, with the eyes slowly readjusting to the darkness everyone finally seemed to notice what he spotted first: there was light.

In the depth of the reservoir, despite everything, they could see a pale bright spot far away from them. No one moved for a long moment, almost like they expected it to reach out for them and attack, but when nothing came forward Hoten was the first one to uncover her torch so they could at least speak with each other.

Even if their light was so small and dimmed by the water itself it shined bright in what made everyone felt like an easy prey.

_ Everyone uncover a single gemstone on their back, that will help everyone locating the others, from now on we will proceed in the darkness touching the walls and approaching as slow as possible _ .’ Link was no expert in underwater tactics but blatantly telling their potential enemy they were coming seemed like a terrible idea _ ‘I will proceed first, Hoten will close the line. If anyone spots anything relevant please uncover another jewel and swim forward to tell us to stop. At the first significant sign of danger it will be Tali’s duty as the fastest swimmer to speed up and inform the king of the situation _.’ He then finally turned to his slate that had been turned off as soon as he spotted the light, the woman let out a small sigh of relief as soon as she saw him, after all the conversation had been cut abruptly. 

He allowed Ere to explain the situation since signing with a single hand would slow things down considerably and, with the device’s lights almost completely turned off they finally proceeded.

Descending was… incredibly unpleasant. The water was growing warmer and warmer, when it reached its peak it almost felt like swimming in a lukewarm soup, and it drastically increased its viscosity to the point Ere had to stop the group and, after apologizing, aiming back to the surface.

Breathing was difficult and Link could swear he felt a different taste in his mouth. They could still see and move but it wasn’t as easy.

And as soon as they moved close enough to actually see what was awaiting them they understood why.

Link was right, there was a Zonai temple in the East Reservoir and even if their barometer was no longer properly giving them depth he knew it was way below the very first Dam. Whoever decided to create the artificial lake first did it for a reason that wasn’t just preventing more floods in Hyrule.

He could only see the light of luminous stones and bright bio luminescent plants but it was enough to see columns created by the ancient tribe and a building whose entrance was a miniature copy of the temple of courage back in Faron: two clawed hands held bright stones and the head of a dragon hid what was probably its entrance.

Hoten’s touch made him stop an the whole small team waited there for a moment, only observing the scene in front of them.

The temple was enclosed in a bubble of air, gelatinous misty pockets all around it that probably helped explain why the water felt so dense around them, and walking in the dry area… zora.

He turned to look at Hoten and in the dim light of his wrist device he only saw her nod. Those were, indeed, the missing ones. There were only six they could see but considering how one of them walked inside the temple they could assume there were more.

Link dragged them in a small concave in the wall, taking the cover off his torch only as much as he needed to be seen, and took command.

_ ‘I will go alone. I’m not even sure I can pass the wall itself but there’s no water in what we can only suppose being an highly contaminated area, you would end like the prince in no time at all.’ _

If anyone wanted to protest about his idea the last consideration had them opt for silence instead, after all it was a superior’s order and they didn’t have Mipha.

_ ‘Pay attention to everything you can see and watch your back as well.I will try to gather all info I can.’ _

He flipped the cover on the stone again and, leaving everyone behind, he approached the underwater bubble. From a closer point he could see the air pocket stretch up with small tendrils that in some points crossed each other like intricate braids and fused in larger chambers, and he could see the surface of the temple covered in black moss where the zonai stones didn’t reach. 

And there were corpses.

One of them relatively close to his position.

The knight covered his mouth and ducked behind a rock while studying what he could only describe as empty husks of more unfortunate zora: their bodies weren’t anything hideous, just marked by extreme malnutrition, but their heads… goddess, their heads were a nightmare. 

The dry skin had been pulled back and fell down like a lifeless sock on both their necks and head tail, leaving only the exposed skeleton below. The bones were dark, striped with marks that from that distance only reminded him of black roots digging in grey charcoal, and their mouth wide open, pointed toward the surface in what could seem a last, desperate scream.

He couldn’t imagine the dead producing any sound, though, as a whole porous structure emerged from their throats like small antennae larger at their ends and apparently solid as rock.

So that was how the hosts died, uh? Completely dried up and used as growing pots for the _ thing _’s spores…

Very carefully he took some pictures, successfully managing to send more or less decent images to Zelda. How disgusting was that? Being turned in fodder for… oh.

In his rambles Sidon mentioned fishes were spawning, could that be referred to that? Then the bridge…

Link’s eyes went to the strings of air carefully trapped in the gelatinous barrier that stretched toward the surface despite still having a long way to cover before reaching it. The _ bridge _.

It was all conjecture, sure, but what if they were building a passageway for… whatever was resting there? Struggling with the small keyboard he sent a last picture to Zelda adding the words ‘A way up?’ to it before sensing danger.

Even if he was in the dark, even if he covered all his jewels and made sure to keep the light of the device as covered as possible… all the workers stopped whatever they were doing, now staring in his direction with blank, lifeless expressions.

He licked his lips, the notes of the song of healing repeating in his mind for safety and Daruk’s protection active. He had been spotted, somehow, probably because he also was a carrier of that plague or.... he couldn’t really think about any other reason they noticed him.

Perhaps he could pretend to be one of them? It wasn’t probably going to work but the zora didn’t seem hostile for now. A deep breath and he was approaching them, his hands gently leaning against the barrier keeping the water out at first and then his whole body passing through it like it was nothing.

The sudden wave of pain hitting both his gills and his lungs left him dizzy for a moment, it as a blessing Zelda could have a live feed of the situation and that the others were behind. Using all his determination he offered the others a void smile and they just… resumed their occupation. 

Which seemed to be tending to small chests filled with rotten remains of fish and land animals that were fermenting with some kind of yellow slime turning in the same gelatin that created the walls. He frowned observing one of the zora scoop up some of that and simply pushing it against the borders. 

So.... it was shaping itself, uh? 

Against his better judgement Link didn’t just stop there, he headed for the temple’s entrance making sure to pass close enough to one of the deceased zora to offer his queen a better look. Simply approaching was enough to steal his breath for a good moment.

Goddess, why was the air so contaminated down there? There was no reason for pushing this poison at that density when the mind of the presents already seemed far gone. Unless…

Unless it wasn’t just a controlling tactic.

It was going to take them so long to build a functional bridge to the surface, there was going to be so much space dedicated to air chambers… he could only imagine the chaos awaiting those in the surface if all the spores contained in this hypothetical tube suddenly reached the air to spread.

He knew it was possible, they only had to have it collapse starting from the bottom and having the air pushed up in the process… if he was at war with someone and had such biological weapon that was how he’d choose to use it.

Then perhaps that was his military inclination forcing him to overthink…

Link stepped forward, as usual his mind worked too hard in that kind of situations and he couldn’t afford that at the moment, he had to reach as far as he could before any of them or their sentient owner realized he wasn’t enthralled like the rest.

Not without fear he finally moved through the jaws of the dragon, from the shape of the stylized horn over its head he could assume it was Farosh between the three, and walked in the dark corridors below with the only company of the slate’s light.

He couldn’t see much but the surface of the building seemed absolutely pristine, as suffocating as the air was there was no sign of actual mold where the Zonai structure stood… where_ it _ grew was between cracks in the wall where the terrain behind was visible.

He was right on that as well, wasn’t it? He was in a containment structure of sort, the walls had probably been enhanced or treated to prevent anything from spreading and when it finally started to fall apart, either due to time or because Vah Ruta’s chaotic presence in the past one hundred years hurt its integrity…

In any case: whatever was there was finally escaping and it was their duty stopping it.

Link didn’t even wanted to imagine any of the zora he knew, especially Sidon, ending up like one of the corpses outside and considering he could also feel it in his lungs other races were probably equally susceptible to the disease, the zora just happened to be the first in line.

Repeating the same eleven notes over and over in his head he proceeded forward, he could feel his illness trying to force its way in his mind and he was glad his ancestors offered him that trick to keep himself safe.

_ You’re welcome, buddy. _ The voice associated to a never ending sea whispered to him.

_ We also love this land, if there’s anything we can do to support you we will gladly do our part _. Fairy grandpa… it was actually reassuring having their voices in his head for once, even if none of them seemed to have any idea of what was hidden there.

_ I’m the oldest one here- _ birds and boundless skies_ -and even I have to admit I’m clueless. Either there was no incarnated hero when this place was sealed or it was kept a secret from us._

Link rolled his eyes, he wasn’t going to be surprised if the latter was true considering the Sheikah and Zonai cooperation. As much as he appreciated Paya’s friendship and Koko’s cuisine they had the habit to keep things for themselves…

_ Eh _ was the general comment he got from a lot of Links in return.

The zora was glad he had incredible orientation skills as the corridors kept splitting over and over, he knew he wasn’t the only one keeping track of his path in his head and- oh, oh no.... it was a labyrinth, wasn’t it?

Like the Lynoltaurus of the legends what better place to trap a monster if not in the middle of a maze? With a grunt he stopped studying his surroundings, the zora coming and going from it clearly had a way to know the right path and while they didn’t really leave wet footprints or anything perhaps he could… follow one of them? 

It was certainly dangerous considering the longer he spent around them the higher the chances of being spotted were but in case of failure he could probably attempt that.

_ If only you had Wolf’s nose, he was a master at following tracks. _ The… wolf? No shit, of course he was better than a zora at following people around, Link didn’t even have a sense of smell anymore beside a basic one while in water!

A small flash of light alerted him of a message from Zelda and he stopped there, humming.

‘I’m mapping the area, keep wandering, I will inform you if we’re overlapping the same corridors.’

Bless her. He smiled at his queen, truly appreciating her support in that moment and she returned the feeling before assuming a horrified expression and pointing behind him.

With a jump Link moved forward, immediately uncovering his armor’s stones for light, only to find himself in front of what he could only describe as a semi-calcified jellyfish creature. Where one would expect to find only the delicate body of an invertebrate there was a rudimentary skeleton visible through the clear skin, where his instinct told him fins would be there were long skeletal limbs it used to drag itself around and from its mouth protruded two serpent like fangs between many rows of sharp teeth.

_ A parella? But they’re extinct! _He pushed bird boy’s voice aside, that things was clearly undead and it mutated from whatever he could see in his past self’s memories, it was a decaying monster that tried to go for his neck.

And Sidon’s collar was made to stop powerful jaws from crushing his neck, not protect him from piercing fangs.

Wait… could it be-

_ Don’t think, run! _

Right, while he could probably take one down he was in the middle of their base with a single trident, if more of those… things swarmed him there was no way of getting out, not when literally every bone in that body seemed sharp as a blade and not considering he also had zora to dodge.

He ducked to avoid a swipe and the creature’s limb brushed against his shoulder piece as he ran as fast as his short legs and Revali’s power allowed him. Screeches from behind and let him know immediately running away had been the wisest choice even if not the bravest one.

It was when one of them blocked his path that Link truly grasped how tragic his situation would have been if he hesitated: he tried to push it back piercing it with his trident… and as soon as his weapon penetrated in the jelly part of the creature’s body it started dissolving like it came in contact with the most potent acid.

How… he thought it was possible to melt silver only with heat!

With no time to waste he jumped forward trying to avoid it and abandoning his weapon to its destiny: he was without protection considering his armor was made in the same material and without weapon, a retreat was obligatory.

Eleven notes pushed over and over in his mind as the sense of oppression increased, three more enemies barely dodged as his body grew weaker and weaker- walking in there without healing properly first had been a terrible idea but between Daruk protecting him from a slash attack that would have opened his stomach in two and Revali he managed to push forward to the exit. Only to find himself blocked by a wall of zora pushing themselves together to stop his escape.

_ I’m sorry _ \- he only muttered to himself before jumping against the closest one and unleashing Urbosa’s fury in all its glory to zap them all taking advantage of both their proximity and their metallic ornaments _ I’m so sorry! _he repeated in his mind knowing that probably killed the weaker of them. They were too far gone anyway and he had duties, he couldn’t…

Taking a deep breath he pushed himself away from them, only two still standing, and ran to the gelatinous wall only to find himself struggling to get through. Dear Hylia, it was sentient as well, wasn’t it? That was why it was shaping itself and let him pass with no effort as he stepped in the small underwater bubble…

And now it trapped him there.

He was able to pass with enough effort but it took him time, he didn’t have such luxury and-

_ Let’s bring back Pierre. _What?

The sound of something falling near his feet alerted him but when he dared to look down all he found was… _ the _ ocarina? Somehow?

_ I don’t even know how to play it! _ he protested loudly in his mind, honestly starting to panic as he failed to pass once more. He wasn’t in the shape for a big fight, not after almost bleeding out to death just a few days prior.

_ Well, I don’t know how to play an accordion. Now be a good boy and get it, you have no idea how hard it was to pass it to you! _

He frowned but Link knew better than doubt fairy boy when the alternative was being mauled to death. The knight signed ‘Just go’ in the direction where he knew his soldiers were and proceeded to grab the instrument, before he knew it his fingers were already being guided in a song that felt completely unfamiliar.

And with that the dead were rising, the wall of zora was now on its feet again, all of them with their features twisted, bones sticking out and skin bent forcing their face to resemble Link’s original features more than their original self, a horrid mix of his hylian self and the people they once were.

His eyes widened as the music’s title, _Elegy of Emptiness,_ was whispered in his mind. Well, that… was disturbing but certainly bought him a bit of time. 

He secured the ocarina to his belt and pushed his hands against the wall once more, the jelly substance slowly giving up under his touch. From the sounds of battle behind him there was no time left, both remaining furies were unleashed against the substance blocking him and it finally gave up, opening only enough to let him out.

The knight was filled with relief as soon as he realized they weren’t following him outside, sticking to the safer grounds of their dry temple, and relaxed his muscles as he stopped to give Zelda a better view of the field.

That until his fail twitched and a sudden sense of dread overcame him. 

He immediately turned only to see bright luminescent spots appear in the dark behind him, scales delimiting a long serpentine body and the crest on its back. Link couldn’t really see it in the darkness but what he could gather was how huge the creature stirring in front of him was- and as soon as its eyes opened, bright yellow moons bigger than the hero himself on their own, Link knew he was its target.

A light dangling in front of its face allowed him to see rows and rows of sharp teeth, the dancing lights on its body told him to fear its speed and movements and the intelligence in its expression told him he wasn’t merely in front of an empty husk: that creature was ancient, alive and ready to kill for whatever slept in the temple’s belly.

_ Holy shit. _

At least he was glad all the past heroes in his mind agreed with him on that one.

The temple’s courtyard was filled with parella zombies and dead zora now assuming a kneeling position probably to bloom for their host, the water had… that.

And he wasn’t ready to fight such a thing.

Link dropped all bright jewelry that could give away his presence if it was accidentally uncovered and got rid of what was left of his scarf because the last thing he wanted was to have it stuck somewhere, and prepared himself.

Even so, he barely dodged the first attack and as soon as he rolled over the body of the creature avoiding its teeth his skin bruised like he passed his scales on a grater.

Link almost assumed he would have time to reach the wall for some kind of protection when the giant stopped on its spot, the water currents suddenly changing around him, and the knight’s knowledge about his own nature kicked in: if it was like him, if it had an eel’s body, it could swim backward and didn’t need to turn like other fishes.

He didn’t even stop to think after that, Link knew it would be over if he allowed that giant snake to stop with its mouth too close to him, and darted up to attach himself to its upper fin, where he hoped its most delicate scales would be. It still hurt like hell when he closed his hands around it but by the way he was suddenly propelled back by the creature’s body it was clear he just saved his own skin.

Okay, how was he supposed to deal with this?

_ We don’t know _. he could feel the primal fear in all the Links who happened to be born a zora, between speed and size he was at a terrible disadvantage there and he was bleeding again, certainly not his best moment. At least Daruk seemed to get hard to work and offer him all the protection he could even if he just saved his life a moment earlier.

Okay, he could do this. He could probably try to zap it if he didn’t use all charges earlier-

_ Urbosa, please! _

_ I’m trying my best, kid! _

Okay, no Fury for now. And even with Revali’s help he wasn’t clearly fast enough to escape it considering its speed.

His desperate train of thoughts was interrupted when the guardian’s body position shifted, one second it was horizontal to the bottom and the other it was lifting itself up vertically. Link’s eyes widened, it was trying to smash it against the wall, wasn’t it?

He barely managed to let go in time to see the creature slam its whole body against the rocky formations of the basin and took his only change to seek for one of the many small concaves in the ground to find shelter from the attack that was definitely going to follow.

A close encounter with the creature’s mouth as he slipped between two edges of ground gave him a close view of its teeth in the light of his slate, it didn’t even have a tongue, only sharp blades pointed toward the inside of its throat, being hit by a single one of those would mean being dragged in without hope.

Oh, Hylia, how was he supposed to escape this?

The walls around him cracked when the sea snake slammed its body against his hiding spot, the smell of his blood was probably giving away his position even more than the light, and Link knew his only chance was using the wall to his advantage.

He took a deep breath despite the unpleasant viscosity of the water and gathered all courage to take his next step, Link got his head out only to check where the creature was while preparing for its next charge and as soon as it moved forward he darted up, hoping to be able to take advantage of the time it took him to slam against the rocks and readjust to find another small shelter.

By the time he spotted another crack in the walls its teeth were already descending on him once more and a sharp pain against his side informed him one of the fins around his hip had been slashed open.

Thank the goddesses for that, if it just pierced it he would probably have been dragged in.

And, unlike his head fin and the ones on his arms… at least that one didn’t hinder too much his movements. 

Shaking and out of breath he prepared himself for the next move, Link only managed to go up a little and there still was a long way to go.

The knight waited there for a moment, trying to time himself with the next attack, but nothing came until he attempted to check outside, carefully only placing his head out of his shelter. It was still there, waiting as well and as soon as Link’s crest was out it charged in his direction again.

He barely had any time to retreat before being crushed. Fuck, it was learning too fast

Okay, it was either staying there and bleeding to death because between the spores in his respiratory system and the wounds the already weakened Mipha wasn’t being able to catch up or facing the challenge as it was.

His hands were shaking as he raised them to look at the distressed Zelda visible through his device. There was a lot to say but not enough time and if he had to spell with a single hand…

_ ‘I l o v e y o u’ _

That was all he wanted to say in case he didn’t make it. Link knew he didn’t have to add more, their relationship had always been platonic but incredibly intense, and… if he wasn’t going to have a chance to properly atone for disappearing and all he at least wanted to leave her with that. 

After saying that he cut the transmission, only relating on the device as a torch. 

He needed to be fast and he needed to be lucky enough to find proper shelters in his way to the surface, whether he made it or not hopefully this depth welling nightmare wasn’t going to be able to reach the others above water.

_ Listen, if we don’t make it- _

_ Shut up, Revali _. 

_ I’m just going to say I still think you’re a loser. _

He chuckled between his teeth.

_ I still think you’re a true asshole. _

But he was grateful for the short lived moment of distraction as he prepared himself for the next move, he could tell the monster was waiting for him. And Link was ready to face it.

He bolted out of his shelter aiming in a direction, inverting it as soon as he felt the creature rushing toward him.

Link didn’t even bother to look at it as he scanned the area around him while diving up, if it learnt that fast he needed to get all height he could between a dash and another.

The water moving alerted him another charge was coming and he bolted down instead, barely avoiding the first attack and almost fell between its jaws as it twisted itself upside down without leaving the surface of the wall to charge once more. It was a miracle he managed to kick himself away from the rocky surface just in time and that he spotted a vertical crack to hide in from there.

As soon as he slipped in Link took a deep breath of relief, while his current shelter didn’t hide his intentions from the beast it allowed him to climb up a lot more. It was tight, sure, but being an eel for once truly paid off as the slime covering his skin allowed him to squeeze even between the smallest corners, all of this under the watchful gaze of his hunter.

Sweet Hylia, if that was how his prey felt when he hunt them he could consider turning vegetarian.

_ Oh, please, if there’s one thing that we all have in common is the love for good food. _

He appreciated the knight of the Oracles’s attempt to crack in a joke but it didn’t really help with his mood as he slowly proceeded in his path. 

A wave of desperation almost hit him as the wall finally closed above him and he turned to stare back at the snake, 

An attempt was made turning all lights off and trying to move up and down, golden eyes still following him and confirming that thing could track his movements. His only option still was trying to rush up.

Link left the safety of his shelter only with the upper half of his body and the creature… waited. No more blind attacks, uh? That thing was too intelligent for his tastes.

The knight attempted to look around for more holes to use as shelter but even if the light barely started to filter through the surface he could barely see the darkened rocky surface and vaguely distinguish the serpentine like figure of the beast chasing him.

It was either dying there, he had no fairies nor Mipha would revive him in her altered status, or giving it a last shot even if every muscle of his body was starting to hurt and give up, the power of adrenaline could only give him so much strength.

What followed almost happened in a blur: he sprinted up pushing as far as he could, desperation settled in as he realized the surface of the wall was now smooth and had no room for him to hide… and two hands pushed him away as the mouth of the monster closed near him.

The smell of blood filled the water as he hit the wall once more and he froze in fear as the creature passed by. 

Content, probably considering its duty fulfilled, the giant snake slowed down without realizing his original target was still alive, the lights on its body slowly fading as it returned to a relaxed state and disappeared once more in the depth of the Reservoir.

Link didn’t know how long he waited there, shaken between the horror of losing someone else and the terror of alerting the creature once more, but once the pain started getting too intense he finally managed to shake himself and, with extreme care, move toward the surface.

As soon as he appeared Zelda immediately started sobbing, almost jumping in water but being blocked by Link who just couldn’t stay there anymore. He was infected, sure, he was probably risking to spread his illness, sure, but he needed out.

With the queen between his arms and the king with his guards looking at them from a safer distance he finally dared to look at the zora of his group. They were all there but Hoten and he had to choke his own sobs as the full realization she just sacrificed herself for him hit.

No, act first and mourn later, that had always been the priority.

Link gently pushed Zelda away and stood up, his legs shaking and his body incredibly weak.

_ ‘Give me stamina and hearty potions, we’ve seen what happens to infected people and we need to heal-’ _ He was interrupted by his own body as his knees failed him as the adrenaline rush finally hit its end, leaving him feel absolutely depleted of all energies _ ‘I’m fine. I will rest later.’ _

“You will rest now.”

_ ‘Later. You’ve seen what happens when… they die.’ _ He detached the ocarina from his belt, offering it back to Zelda. It felt… natural, like it was supposed to return someday to the royal family of Hyrule. ‘I will teach you the right song and I need you to play it for Sidon.’

“You can’t suggest-”

He simply turned toward the rest of the soldiers, he knew he was about to ask a lot from them but at the same time the prince could probably be fooled…

_ ‘Promise the Prince you’re taking him back to the surface, pretend you figured out the problem and bring him to me. Be fully ready to face an attack from him, take all the guards needed and-’ _

_ Can I mention Parella can squeeze through walls? They used to be invertebrates back in my days so what if one of them still is and it’s the one thing lurking in the cavern with the door? _

Link’s eyes widened at bird boy’s words, that thought had been incredibly invasive but he could tell why. The zora licked his lips, shaking.

‘_Put more guards at every possible exit, even sealed ones, of the Western Caves, I suspect we’re facing something that can elude most barriers.’_ A pause before looking up at King Dorephan as his hands moved for the final order he was about to give_ ‘Please take the king to a safe spot and bring prince Sidon to the base of the upper city, I will be waiting for him where the old ladder was.’_

“If my son is going to be there so will I, my boy.”

_ ‘I beg you not to come because he’s your son, sir. _ ’ he put a strong emphasis on the movements of the word ‘because’, Link knew the king’s word was final but at the same time he didn’t really want one of the few good fathers he could remember meeting see the red zora as he wasn’t in his right mind _ ‘I promise you we will let you speak with him as soon as he’s back to himself. Please.’ _

And like he did many times with king Rhoam in a life that no longer was his, Link prostrated himself to the ground, both bloodied palms and crest pushing against the marble of the pier. 

There was a long silence during which he didn’t dare to move, the knight only jumped up when he heard the loud steps of the king approaching.

_ ‘Danger’ _ he spelled quickly, stepping back, the last thing everyone needed was to get Dorephan infected as well. The large zora sighed, nodded with understanding and finally stepped away.

“You shouldn’t bow like that to me, son…” there was hesitation in his voice “That being said, I cannot grant you this wish. If he’s sick, I want to be there for him, even if just a reassuring presence. I will be on the bridge above and this is final. Now, I understand the urgency of your requests but I order you to take at least an hour to recover for yourself, I know asking for longer will only upset you but- give our medics the time to stitch you together.”

Fuck this. He wanted to object but he just… couldn’t. He was too weak to take Sidon to the surface himself and even if Sidon put him in charge no one of his orders could outrank Dorephan’s ones.

He nodded before sitting in the bathtub that had been left there, filled and already prepared, and smelling his own blood. The remaining soldiers simply jumped from the balcony to the water below but he needed to be carried… especially considering he was a ticking bomb filled with spores of all kinds right now.

Before the king could reach him his body finally gave up and he blacked out.

\- - -

He didn’t rest three days this time, but it still was three hours. When he woke up he was still in a bloodied tub but all his wounds had been covered with the now familiar clay the underwater city used to medicate and Mipha had already cleansed most of the infection from his gills, probably supported by all the medicines put in his system.

Link even offered himself a moment of peace before reaching for a nearby towel, damping it in water and wrapping it around his sides so eventual stray spores would be trapped there.

His mini slate was on the table beside him but no one apparently dared to remove Sidon’s regalia from his neck and he rolled his eyes almost looking forward the moment the zora would be lucid enough to take it off himself.

There were enough problems at hand without worrying about the Domain’s etiquette, right?

“You’re awake!”

The knight offered a tired smile to Zelda, at least they got to see each other again… unlike Hoten and her friends in the undercity. The bitterness of the loss was there, it felt like a failure of his and… he genuinely liked her, she was polite but determined to follow her duties and protect the others. He costed the Domain a great soldier.

“I know what you’re thinking but…”

_‘Act now, mourn later, I know.’_

The queen placed a hand against his shoulder and he replied with a nod. It was time to bring Sidon back to his mind, or at least attempt so. He just needed Zelda to understand how to play the ocarina and teach her the song of healing, if it worked with the prince perhaps they also had a chance with the people trapped in the caves.

As soon as his eyes wandered to her belt and the instrument attached to it she moved to grab it between her hands.

“You know… I don’t think I ever held one of those before, yet I know exactly how to use it.”

Of course, they both had ghosts of their past incarnations lingering over them, even if he could only hope the Zelda of the past could find their final rest unlike the heroes in green.

“Come on, teach me your song and let’s bring your prince back, mh?”

\- - -

His legs were still shaking under his weight when Sidon emerged from the water, handcuffs around his wrists and the confused expression of someone who didn’t quite know what was happening around him.

And as soon as his eyes met Link’s figure his whole face lit up.

“Dearest! You’re still here! I’ve been told I had a surprise awaiting me and I have to admit it’s a delight finding out it’s you. You look as wonderful as usual-”

He clenched his fists as the prince approached, he could feel everyone’s eyes on them but- everyone knew Sidon wasn’t truly looking at him by now so he could let that kind of declarations slide in for now.

The simple idea of us adoring words being clearly directed at him and while he wasn’t hallucinating, thought? He couldn’t even… he just… no. He felt his whole body tense up and his heartbeat skyrocket just thinking about it.

Keep imagining your non existing boyfriend, prince, hylian Link was not going to return now or ever.

A deep breath to calm his nerves and link stood between Sidon and Zelda as she started playing her tune, immediately catching the other’s attention. If he tried to escape in the water there were enough zora able to produce sounds to sing for him even there, with no ladder up he truly had no ways to escape this… and with the first notes being played with _ the _ ocarina he wouldn’t be surprised if the song was already having effect.

And as he feared Sidon’s gaze quickly changed from confusion to realization… and from there to sudden primal rage. 

One moment the prince was gushing over ‘his beloved’ and asking about their daughter, the one right after he was darting toward Zelda at full speed.

_ Ready for one last dance? _He simply asked to the spirits inside him. He couldn’t really use Urbosa, not now, but he needed the other three for a last push.

_ With you it’s always one last dance but you never stop bothering us. _

_ That’s my baby brother, of course I’m ready! _

_ Well, tiny man, time to show what we can do together! _

He charged back ignoring Dorephan’s calls, perfectly aware his words couldn’t reach Sidon in his current state, and.hissed loudly as he shielded his queen dealing with the first, trying to stop him was like being hit by a train at full speed- whatever that meant.

_I think we’re been a bit too much with you recently, I think I’m the only one around here who should know what that is._

Well, thank you, mr. engineer, It still hurt like hell as he used his own body, strengthened by Daruk, to block him. 

They faced each other in a test of strength and despite all support Link was receiving from the souls in him he barely found himself able to keep him in place for a moment before being forced to dodge sharp teeth snapping close to his face.

Okay, whatever happened he just needed to buy Zelda time without hurting the prince, right?

He pushed him back and found himself dancing to dodge both his mouth and claws, every time Sidon dared to step toward his queen he just ungracefully headbutted him and even if he could see sparks of intelligence in the other one’s eyes at moment Link didn’t lower his guard.

Not when Sidon’s claws actually found his way to his side, opening a large wounds where his gills were, not when Dorephan started singing on the song’s melody and the rest of the Domain followed in the desperate attempt to help, not when Sidon stumbled back in clear confusion between one attack and the other.

He did lower his guard, thought, when the prince stopped to look at him, desperately whispering ‘what have I done?’

Before he could smile and welcome him back Sidon was above him, pushing the knight against the cold floor and crushing the armlet between his powerful jaw. Goddesses above, if he followed his instinct and took it off he wouldn’t only struggle with the metal being too tight and taking his breath away, he’d be dead.

As soon as the that thought was over he felt the prince’s teeth pierce his shoulder’s skin, cutting through his scales like it was butter. That’s when Sidon’s charge suddenly stopped, only when the taste of Link’s blood filled his mouth.

Many people stopped singing even if Zelda’s ocarina kept playing and Link didn’t move as the prince’s eyes started to focus again. Holy hell, he just… crushed his shoulder like it was nothing, he felt the whole joint crack.

He could even feel Mipha panic, that alone spoke volume on his bones’s condition right now- but it didn’t matter.

What was important was how carefully the prince retreated his teeth, how the absolutely ashamed and horrified look on his face told Link he was back in his own mind. That was the exact moment the knight finally felt his whole body and mind finally relax after weeks…

His gaze wandered, searching for Zelda and the queen simply nodded in his direction. Good, they were going to have everything under control and now that Sidon was himself again… he could actually take a break despite the emergency at hand to allow his body to recover.

He was certain he tried to raise his only good hand to say something but for the second time in mere hours everything went black once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And he finally has time to heal a bit, it's been a rush for Link to bring Sidon back and he didn't even know why but he did it! Yes, he fainted twice in a single chapter but trust me, when your hemoglobin values is really low and your body is still trying to heal it's really easy to lose consciousness and from now on things should get better. Probably.
> 
> If you're wondering what the Parella are: https://zelda.gamepedia.com/Parella They're the 'Zora' of Skyward Sword, basically. 
> 
> Next update in two weeks because I don't really have free time lately, I apologize in advance,


	12. Time for a break

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize if it's not the most exciting chapter but... you know, transition between one part and another. Thank you for understanding-
> 
> I also want to thank Trickstersgambit who made[ this wonderful fanart for my zora boy](https://trickstersgambit.tumblr.com/post/189431059996/finished-it-i-had-to-stop-working-on-the-parella). Please if you can check their blog and their patreon, their commissions are open as well so *finger guns*

The path in the middle of the forest was clear and inviting, while white mist seemed to engulf and devour the world Around Link, the small passage between the foliage was clean and felt… safe? He didn’t quite remember how he ended up in that place to begin with but the knight felt unusually serene, almost like he left all his worries behind knowing it was time to return home. 

Ghostly flames danced around his figure, the familiar presence of the old champions was lost to him, yet it all felt… right. Step after step he knew he was reaching forward for the place he was meant to be, for the place all heroes were meant to be.

He barely stopped to take notice his body was hylian once more, he missed feeling hair between his fingers after all, he barely took notice of how he was wearing the green tunic the Sheikah prepared for the coming Hero of Hyrule all those years in the past, he still didn’t stop to ask himself any question, nor he slowed down when the leaves under his boots stopped cracking at every step being now silent under his feet.

Link couldn’t help but smile when he saw lights dance in the distance, it was such a reassuring sight, just a few more steps and he was finally going to-

“Hey, kid? You should stop here by the bonfire with us before proceeding further, let’s have a little talk.”

It was like snapping out of a dream, Link’s head turned to the side and in a small clearing he found both Fairy Grandpa and Wolf Grandpa sitting on old logs and clearly waiting for him as a soup boiled in front of them. Wait, how… where was he?

His whole body felt suddenly cold and, after a moment of hesitation, he reached for the two men who were wearing uniforms similar to his own. He slowly raised his hands twice, trying to think for something to say, but his limbs felt strangely numb and his head heavy. 

Fortunately enough the hero of time decided to break the silence one more time.

”You can talk here, we can all talk here… this place isn’t real, kid, and even if all heroes are forced in silence by what is either Hylia or Demise’s curse-” He blinked. Hylia’s… curse? And how did he know who Demise was even if he never met or fought against him? “-no one can take our voice in death.”

His blood ran cold at that and Link gaped in Fairy’s direction. Was he…

“You’re not dead. Yet.” Wolf offered him a bowl of soup and he instinctively grabbed it, feeling almost relieved by its warmth “you’re really close to it, thought, you’ve been taking damage non stop for days now. Why do you think you can hear us and your Champions more often lately?”

Of course. He squinted looking down at the meal he had been offered and a warm chuckle came from Fairy.

“Fear not, that’s just something to warm up your soul, even if you eat here it will not get you stuck in this forest. Proceeding further, that would be your final sentence, we’re here to prevent that. Well, we and your fish friend, that girl is doing wonders with your body.”

There was a long moment of silence as he weighed all his options, all the questions he had, but in the end all he could offer was a tired ‘thank you’ before bringing the meal to his lips. Oh… it had no real taste but it felt incredible.

“So…” His ears twitched as Wolf started talking, almost expecting some life lessons coming in or them to try to teach him something… and he wasn’t in the mood for that “... we will be here for quite some time, what do we want to talk about?”

Both Links shrugged at that, the alive one feeling relieved to be offered such an easy way out, then both perked up and spoke together.

“Horses?”

There was an awkward moment of silence and all three started chuckling, he could vaguely remember most of ‘them’ having a legendary horse named Epona at their side, the love for those creatures had to be something hereditary like the master sword.

“Of course we all want to talk about horses, even if I have to admit it’s surprising how you found yourself a fury like Lunch.”

“And such a sweetheart too, Chestnut is adorable.”

Neither of them mentioned the third horse and Link somehow knew it was a sore subject for at least one of them even if he wasn’t being granted access to those memories. Why? Had been Fairy Grandpa trampled by a horse similar in size?

“Well, I guess it’s Links being Links, horses are part of our… whatever we are."

“Well…” There was a fond and amused light in grandpa’s eyes “I think the love for horses is strong between all Links, that’s for sure, but I especially think it runs strong in our bloodline.”

“That’s true, old man.”

Not really knowing how to answer that Link took another sip from his bowl before freezing as his gears started to turn.

“Wait, do you mean-”

Fairy chuckled once more, his wrinkles more evident every time he smiled.

“While most of us aren’t related, you are, indeed, our descendant. This is why we managed to step here in time.”

It took him a moment to process that information… so he truly had to hold the name of the hero up, didn’t he? He bit his lips wondering how much shame be brought upon them running away like a coward after finding the mask and how… he was going to kill a heroic bloodline as well, wasn’t he?

“Oh, perish the thought.” Fairy got up from his log, covering the distance between them and placing a reassuring hand against his shoulder “First of all, we’re all proud of you: forget the weird idea that we have to match the heroes in books for both style and behavior, we’ve never been that. We like horses, play music, pottery shakes in fear whenever we are too close… and we fight for those we care about. That’s all a Link is supposed to be, kid.” That sounded more reassuring than he expected “Second: a bloodline’s continuation isn’t everything.” he winced at those words even if he couldn’t explain why he felt so conflicted about it “But we know what your past was like, even if you don’t remember, and why this is such an important thing for you. So… would you feel better if I told you: you aren’t the last one anyway?”

Link’s head darted up, eyes wide open as he stared at the hero of time. He… wasn’t the last one? There still was someone of his family alive?

“Do you think a stupid calamity could stop your sister?” his lips parted in surprise “You know, she’s the one who created the stable system as we know it nowadays.” He gasped loudly at that, how very… natural it felt, somehow, even if he could barely remember her.

“And even if she passed away of old age you have three grand nieces walking around the Land.” Did he? “You even met one, her name is Suzuna.” His bowl dropped, of course he’d remember her: she was the woman seeking the God Horse fountain to revive her best friend, he just didn’t see her since he confirmed her the presence of the fairy nearby. Did she even- “Yes.” Fairy’s eyes, usually veiled with sadness, were filled with mirth as he spoke while Wolf kept his distance.

“You aren’t very likely to remember much of this meeting once you awaken, child of the wild, but… I think we found the perfect topic to talk about. Would you hear about your family?”

His only reply was an enthusiastic nod.

\- - -

Sidon didn’t know how he managed to find the courage to enter the chamber where the Champion was being kept but Zelda had insisted to have a private conversation with the King and the prince wasn’t yet allowed to leave the upper city so… in the end visiting Link seemed the only sensible option. 

They couldn’t bring him back underwater, not when only half of his gills were functional, so one of the guests room for important visitors had been converted real quick in a medical ward, everything had been pushed against the walls to favor free passage around the eel’s bed and between vials of medicine and surgery tools the whole place had been… redecorated.

And Sidon hated knowing it was in large part his fault: the shattered shoulder, the huge gash on Link’s sides… the prince didn’t quite know how much had been really caused by their fight and what by his meeting with the Leviathan like creature lurking in the Reservoir but being informed the doctors wanted to keep him sedated to limit the pain or that his right arm was unlikely to recover full mobility despite his incredible healing skills- that hurt.

Sidon felt powerless and small as he stepped past the guards and walked in the Champion’s room: the lights were dim, probably to help him rest with more ease, and Link’s unconscious body had been accommodated on the large bed that had been made to hold royalty. He seemed so small between sheets and bandages and even if Sidon knew the man was a force to fear more than anything else the only word he could use to describe him right now was  _ fragile _ .

He almost disappeared between the white layers covering him and-

“Your majesty…”

That genuinely startled the prince but as he turned to see who was following him inside Link’s room a new different sense of guilt filled him. It was the green medic zora Link befriended, he was carrying a basin filled with warm water and towels and he didn’t seem surprised at all to find him of all people there.

Sidon almost jumped to the side after realizing he was in the way and waited silently as the other stepped forward to reach Link’s side, dropped some medical herbs in the hot liquid and proceeded to take Link’s vital signs in silence and take notes.

He was supposed to apologize, wasn’t he? While trapped in his dreamlike state, something he was still fighting with the help of Link’s melody, the prince was absolutely convinced that green zora, Nasan, was a threat to his and the Champion’s happiness. And he knew at some point he wanted him dead.

“Sir, if I may… I think I owe you my apologies. I cannot remember clearly but I recall invading your personal space in the worst possible way when you tried to help me with the rest of the medical staff.”

“Please, my lord, there is no need. If I may speak frankly-”   
  
“Please, do.”   
  
“While jealousy would be quite unbecoming of you, there isn’t a single zora who isn’t perfectly aware the person who walked in that body wasn’t our prince.”

“It doesn’t change the fact I-” he failed his people in a time of need, it was already a blessing Link happened to be there at the right moment to notice something was wrong and despite everything… he could only remember doubting every single warning coming out the man’s lips. “- I may not have been myself but that’s not an excuse. I am incredibly sorry for all the distress I have caused you and your coworkers.”

A gentle sigh followed and the green zora nodded.

“If it helps, then… I accept your apologies, my prince. But I think our priority should be focusing on the problems at hand.” Right, he didn’t really need to be reminded that- Sidon wanted to help, he just didn’t know how. “And with that I mean us. You are clearly still shaken, I can only imagine the horror of biting someone dear to one’s heart, perhaps you should stay here and spend some quiet time with your fiancé instead of worrying so much.” 

“He is not my fiance.” Even if Link did accept his regalia the knight didn’t know the meaning of such gesture and Sidon wasn’t the kind of man who was going to take advantage of that; he was going to bow in front of his father and announce the end of his engagement and… move on.

“He might as well be.” A short pause “My lord.” Nasan added bringing both hands on his lap now that he was done checking on Link’s condition.

“As important as traditions are we cannot impose them on people who aren’t familiar with them. He didn’t accept my armlet as sign of interest, he accepted it as armor and that’s how it will be treated.” Armor that saved his life, apparently. It had to be cut to let him breathe but it was the only thing that prevented Sidon from biting his neck instead the shoulder.

He couldn’t even imagine a world where he was Link’s assassin.

“That’s not what I mean, my prince.” The man finally turned to look at Sidon, then sighed “I’m just trying to say he truly pushed himself for someone who is supposedly his best friend and nothing more. As soon as he discovered you were sick he didn’t rest beside three days of unconsciousness and as soon as you returned back to yourself.... I think I speak for the whole medical staff when I say the change in his posture was evident, it was like he suddenly allowed all his wounds to catch up with his body. It’s not my place to assume anything but-”

“It’s just Link being Link, nurse Nasan.” Everyone heard Sidon calling his real name when the knight fainted under him and he was just glad all the presents agreed to pretend they didn’t know until he was comfortable with sharing the truth “He cares too much about everyone and I happen to be one of his closest friends…”

He covered his face with a hand, they were best friend, Sidon loved him, and Sidon totally screwed things up- so much for taking things slowly, right dad? It was clear Link had strong issues with the simple concept of homosexuality yet his delusional self didn’t hesitate to propose- and that was only the top of the pile of awful things he did to Link in the past days.

Not to mention everyone was doing their part, some helped with the preparations and some improvised themselves musicians to keep Link’s tune loud in the city, and he had been… told to rest.

There was a long moment of silence then the nurse stood up, offering his seat to the prince.

“It’s time to change the bandages around his waist… perhaps you’d like to assist?”

“Oh, Hylia, yes…”

\- - -

By the time Zelda finished her private meeting with Dorephan Sidon had already been left alone with Link for a while, sitting quietly with the only ‘duty’ to keep an eye on his beloved had been more therapeutic than many other things and he had to admit it: that nurse knew what he was doing when he decided to step out, listening to the knight’s slow breathing managed to calm him more than anything else. 

Too bad the peace wasn’t meant to last.

“Prince Sidon....”

The queen greeted him with a bow of her head and he did the same from his small seat, as much as she clearly loved Link the prince knew she wasn’t there just to visit her friend, and if her meeting with the King was over they probably already had a plan.

“I hope you’re faring better now…”

“I certainly am, queen Zelda.” he commented standing up and stepping back, allowing her access to the hero’s side in case she wanted to approach him. The queen didn’t move a single step in their direction, simply crossing her arms behind her back. Calm and collected in every occasion, what else was he expecting from the woman who held back the calamity for a whole century?

“Good. I hope you gave yourself time to mourn and process what happened because from now on we must take action: if Link’s suspects are correct, and I agree with him, there’s a literal bomb waiting to explode under the lake."

Right, he heard what was apparently growing at the bottom of the Reservoir and while they apparently had time before it could reach the surface they had no real plan on how to counter it, not when the whole dry area was infested with weird undead jellyfish creatures and dangerous zora, not when just right outside it there was a giant monster of the depth. 

“I apologize for asking you to leave as I discussed with your father but I had… ideas. And as I was suspecting the King wasn’t too eager to support me in this.”

The prince straightened his back, it was hard to imagine Dorephan of all people requiring hours to be convinced of something so either her plan was incredibly long and complex or his father was strongly against it. Considering how understanding and supportive as a person he had always been…

“We know too little about the underwater temple to prepare ourselves properly for a fight, I managed to track Link’s movements inside it and map the explored parts but I have the strong suspect we’re not even scratching the surface with it. An approximate depth difference with the undercity caves tell us there are at least three floors inside, this assuming the height of the ceiling doesn’t change… and there’s no safe way to approach the place at the moment.”

Wow, how could things get even better than this?

“That’s what brings me to you.”

The prince’s tail twitched, apparently the ‘never ask what could go worse’ rule even applied to one’s thoughts, not only spoken words.

“I apologize in advance for being too direct but we have no time for smooth talks, not when Link confirmed this illness can be nested in the lungs as well- which implies it may spread even outside the Domain once it breaks out.” 

The queen stopped, inviting him to sit once again, but Sidon shook his head. He had been in shock for a while after awakening but he was still a leader and he didn’t need to be treated with gloves: if there was something he could do for his people he was going to face whatever Zelda needed to tell him with pride.

“We need to reach the Temple in safety and there’s a single way to do so, a single weapon we can use against what’s lurking in the depth.”

Sidon inhaled, closing his eyes for a moment. Of course…

“Vah Ruta…”

“Exactly. I know the Divine Beasts have been dormant for half a decade but they exist to protect Hyrule and the Domain owns the only one who can dive underwater. The problem is: from my experience taming a Beast takes a new Champions months of training, all time we don’t have.”

“Right…”

He didn’t really like where this was going.

“But… both you and your father both have a genetic makeup similar to your sister’s, and you both had a strong bond with her.”

“You’re saying one of us should attempt to become the next Champion.”   
  
“I’m saying _ you _ should try. With all respect, there’s no way your father can climb the cliff to Ruta’s current location.”

The prince sighed: he was sure he left most of his emotional baggage behind when the Beast had been purified, he thought he moved on when Link gave him confirmation of Mipha’s passing and he learnt to accept the giant machine’s shadow towering over the Domain but… the distress he felt at the simple idea of taking a step inside told him otherwise.

Not caring of how inappropriate it was, Sidon leant closer to the hero, gently touching his hand. If Link had been presented with a similar challenge there would have been no hesitation, right? He would have charged in, pressing forward for everyone else’s well being, exactly as he did when he was told to protect everyone from Ganon.

“I will see what can be done. I cannot guarantee you success but I will certainly try my best. Do you have any suggestion on how I should proceed or other things to share with me?”   
  
At that question he saw her hesitate for the first time.

“While I’d love to give you support, I am afraid the one who helped the champions in dealing with their beasts is now unable to help us.” The woman finally stepped forward, placing her hand against one of the bandaged legs “I was quite… narrow minded back in the days, I had a goal and… personal issues, too many to properly offer my support to others. Him? I am not entirely sure how but when Daruk was struggling with Rudania this idiot paid him a visit and in two days the beast was following his orders.”

It was the little things that gave away how passionate Zelda could be: the little smile she offered while talking about her knight, the slightly amused tone when she called him an idiot, there was so much love in her voice but only listening carefully one could hear it.

Well, he never questioned their relationship and he wasn’t going to start  _ now _ .

“What I can tell you is: Representatives of the Sheikah and Rito are coming, I’m counting on you to get information from the former while we can trust the latter.”   
  
“Excuse me?”   
  
“It’s no mystery the people of Kakariko are quite fond of their secrets, I am never surprised when we find out they were hiding something from us… and I expect this is just another case of wanting to stay in the shadows. Still, I know you and lady Paya are quite fond of each other…”   
  
Oh, Hylia, the last thing he needed now were talks about him and-   
  
“No one is blind you both bonded over the common love for Link.” Oh, okay… “this is why I’m asking you to get through your friend and get all you can about this case.”

That he could do with ease, it was less intimidating than taming the Beast.

“And that’s all. You should go and rest, we will move in the morning, I will climb the cliff with you and assist where necessary. I wish we could teleport but I never activated the door behind Ruta with my slate and I admit it’s unknown where Link hid his so…”   
  
As absurd as it sounded, Sidon couldn’t help but think for a moment the knight probably left it with his horses, that mare of his was scarier than the giant black horse after all. Anyway… he needed time to get himself mentally ready for the task and even if sitting at Link’s side had been a soothing experience he could tell he wasn’t the only one who needed it.

“If I may… I think I rested enough for today, everyone has been more than ready to tell me to take it easy despite the circumstances and I’d rather speak with my father or learn how to play this tune instead of making my nest here.” Now, he knew telling her she probably needed rest as well was going to have the opposite effect, while Sidon had limited interactions with the Hylian court it was enough to know the queen decently enough, but if he played his cards correctly… “Actually, I think it’s mandatory I have a proper talk with the King before leaving tomorrow morning, I know you’re probably busy yourself but may I ask you for a favor? Most medics are busy experimenting with the samples the hero provided and I know the nurses are exhausted, since I have to leave would you mind watching over Link for a while?”   
  
She frowned, clearly seeing through his lie, but thankfully enough after a long silence the queen simply nodded her head finally taking the seat right next to Link. 

_ Good _ , he told himself before bidding farewell with a bow, hopefully they were going to get a well needed rest.

\- - -

When Link regained consciousness reality hit him like a plank in the face. There wasn’t a single muscle of his body that wasn’t protesting in pain and he found himself moving the lips to say ‘I’ve been lied to, I want a refund and a ticket back to the forest’ but, of course, all that came out was a feeble series of grunts. Wait, who was he even talking with?

Someone’s sudden movements at his side managed to wake him up completely, no matter how his eyelid still refused to open and his body to move. Oh, goddess, he felt trapped in his body right now, he could barely move the tip of his left hand’s fingers but nothing else was responding.

The man felt panic rise in his chest until very familiar hands cupped his cheeks and Zelda’s voice chimed in, immediately allowing him to relax under her touch.   
  
“It’s okay… it’s all okay. You’ve been sedated because the less you move the better but I promise you’re safe in the Domain.”

He wanted to reply to her but there was no hope to sign like that so Link only proceeded to move his lips as slowly as possible, hoping she’d manage to read them.

_ ‘O k a y’ _

“Good, because I need you to be patient. Goddess, Link, you almost died here. Mipha can keep you up only so much, you know?”

Right, she knew, and even if the zora’s power had always been more similar to a fairy than a long term healer he was pretty sure Zelda put things together by now, realizing the difference.

“Once this is over you should take the time to celebrate properly like we did when we defeated Ganon.” A small chuckle escaped the man’s lips “Remember that wonderful week? I bet the stable owners still can’t quite understand why two very tired teens just… threw a handful of rupees at them and proceeded to sleep for days, only getting up to eat or to use the latrines.”

Good days, even if his most undignified ones. And the only proper vacation they offered themselves before starting to work on reuniting Hyrule under the queen’s banner. 

“I remember finding out the hard way how loud you snore.”

He pursed his lips, pretending to be offended by that insinuation. It was true turning into a zora and losing his nose somehow fixed that issue for him but… he was also aware he used to give his location away way too easily when he was a hylian and asleep.

_ ‘Y o u. L o u d e r.’ _

Take that, Zelda.

“Excuse me? How dare you disrespect your queen like that? I will make sure you’re never ever served properly seasoned meals in the barracks again.”

The gasp he attempted to make to feign offense made his chest hurt so Link opted for sticking out his long, blue tongue instead. That got an exaggerated shudder out of the woman and by her reactions alone he knew there was truly no one else in the room with them.

“Goddess, Link, you’re so gross right now. Between that tongue and having your skin covered in mucus, how are people even considering you handsome?”

People were  _ what _ , now? Oh, that was probably her making fun of him, he was glad to be a weird one. And that his mucus was a natural painkiller because if that’s how he felt between that  _ and _ sedatives the knight didn’t dare to imagine the pain without.

_ ‘R a c i s t’ _

“I’m not… oh, no, I can’t really make fun of your weirdness anymore without you pulling that card out, can I?”

His only reply was sticking his long tongue out once more and both started chuckling. Goddess, he didn’t realize how much he missed those rare moments when both dropped all formalities and were just… siblings. And talking about brothers and sisters-

“Mh?”

He tried to vocalize to get her full attention once more but Link barely manage to get any sound out, fortunately that was enough.

_ ‘S i d o n?’ _

“Oh, he’s fine. he made a full recovery and while he still has signs of infection the music is keeping his head in place.” A pause as the knight sighed with relief, at least pushing himself to that point had been useful after all “By the way-” Oh, no, he didn’t like that teasing tone “congratulations on your royal engagement. To think I kept telling everyone who asked about us you had no plans to marry into royalty… who knew I was so wrong?”

This time he actually managed to let out a distressed groan, immediately regretting it as his body protested. Zelda just… replied with another chuckle.

“It’s okay, everyone understands the situation, really. Still, how many chances do I get to tease you about your romantic life? You’re more interested in your horses than potential suitors.”

And for good reasons, romance wasn’t something Link ever needed after all. Yes, perhaps his current situation with the Prince was complicated but he just needed to be careful about hiding his identity as Link and make sure… he didn’t even know but he was going to fix that. After fixing the Domain itself because that took priority… as soon as he could move, at least.

“That being said… I’m happy to see your condition is starting to improve. Listen, Link, I can see you’re still really in pain, I’m going to put you back to sleep for a while. I promise we will wake you up if anything relevant happens, okay?”

Well, there was no fighting that, not when he couldn’t move or talk and she clearly already made her decision. Link felt a needle stick in his skin and, as she gently caressed his crest, fell back into unconsciousness.

\- - - 

Sidon had no words to describe the sense of dread that filled him as he stared up at Vah Ruta’s distant figure. In the end him and his father spent most of the night in silence, gently holding each other as they listened to the song of Healing: neither of them wanted to talk about Mipha’s grave even if both knew the prince was soon going to step in it. Or at least attempt to.

“Thank you for coming here so early.”

He turned to look at Zelda, the queen was wearing a set incredibly similar to Link’s climbing one and he found himself wondering if she also used her slate to carry around different gear. Oh. well, it was irrelevant for now, she was the most practical woman he ever had the pleasure to meet and if something was giving her any kind of advantage Sidon was going to welcome that.

“I assume you had your reasons to ask to depart before dawn.”

Not that he minded, he couldn’t close his eyes even trying, but it was unusual to see even her in such a hurry- especially considering the menace at the base of the lake wasn’t as imminent as they feared.

“Yes. My personal guards have been seen at Inogo Bridge which means I have to move before they find me. Now… come here, I will secure myself to you, I know zora aren’t naturally inclined to climbing and I’m positive with enough potions I can probably support you in the case you slip.”

“That’s… incredibly reassuring, my queen, but… I thought they knew you’re here.” He wasn’t going to address the whole _ risking to fall to his death  _ part of the discussion, especially not when it implied also dragging the ruling queen of Hyrule with him.

“Kind of. I may or may not have escaped from them with the excuse of reaching the Domain faster…?”

Oh, sweet Hylia. Sidon gaped in her direction with more amusement than he wanted to show, was he truly running on Ruta’s cliff with a runaway queen?

“I managed to slow down my guards making them carry a giant diving bell but they’ll be here soon and I’d rather get things done before having to halt everything to explain them why I need to do things and waste time. I held back the Calamity for a century and I’m suddenly too precious to open doors by myself.” She let out an annoyed grunt as she passed more ropes around the prince’s body “I’m not trying to imply anything here but if Link ever starts working under your crown for whatever reason-” Sidon’s tail twitch nervously “- do not let him decide anything about your personal security. He’s way too good at that.”

He wasn’t completely sure her banter wasn’t just an attempt to make him less anxious but… if it was her efforts were clearly working.

“Seriously, I can barely use the bathroom without being escorted and, again, don’t get me started on doors, those are too dangerous for me. I fear more falling dead over boredom and paperwork than random assassins any noble could send, I truly mean it when I say the castle is impenetrable.”

Sidon waited until she was done with the roped attaching them to each other and frowned as she chugged down the content of various bottles.

“I will keep that in mind even if I doubt he’ll ever enlist in my army. I would be very glad to welcome him, of course, but- oof!”

The prince was interrupted by a sudden pull and before he knew it the queen was already climbing… literally carrying him up in the process. He immediately tried to grasp the walls, desperately attempting to offer support and do his part, but she barely seemed to acknowledge that. Well, whatever she drank and her probably enhanced clothes were apparently enough to drag up a giant shark zora as a dead weight.

“With all the respect, I don’t think I should force you to do all the work.” he finally managed to say while turning around and planting both feet against the rocky surface… immediately realizing he had no real idea on what was the most effective way to tackle the whole climb. Oh, if there only was a waterfall by Ruta’s place but all underwater passages to reach it were in the Reservoir and their only safe way in was that vertical path.

“Just… keep walking against the wall and we’ll get there in no time, that alone is already a big help.”

Sidon could see her muscles contract with the climb’s strain and he frowned, she was clearly not giving him time to adjust, putting the whole thing on her shoulders instead. Goddess, Zelda and Link were more similar than he thought, weren’t they? 

The prince was glad he managed to grab a couple of rocky ledges here and there to help her a little until she found enough breath to talk, her teasing tone immediately brought Mipha back to his mind.

“Anyway…” She was panting but not slowing down in the slightest, the only times she stopped even for a moment was only to gulp down more potions “I know you’d welcome him. Trust me, everyone knows.”

“It’s not completely my fault-” his feet slipped against the wet surface, how was the queen even able to have such a strong hold on the rocky terrain? “-He has been very insistent with his wedding proposals in the past few months, no matter how blind he was to the meaning of his gifts. He gave me a dragon scale…” She chuckled and jumped further to grab a small protrusion, that’s when he finally figured out how she avoided to slip: there was a thin layer of ice forming wherever she placed her fingers, probably anchoring her to the place. “He gave me a horse.”

“Oh, my my, he must be quite serious then.”

Both chuckled even if she clearly sounded tired, as much as she put weird enhanced liquids in her system and as much as Sidon tried to help it was clear the woman wasn’t having an easy time.

“Hey, Sidon?”

“Mh?”

“It’s now been a while since we left the city, you can’t hear the bards from here so... sing for me, will you?”

\- - - 

The queen collapsed on her knees when they both finally reached the top of Ruta’s Reservoir, she was panting heavily but seemed absolutely satisfied with herself. Sidon, on the other hand, feared the almighty power of hylian elixirs, he knew the Champion was overly fond of them but he never expected them to be so powerful.

Then again, Link crafted them with dragon parts and he could only imagine what the combined efforts of the Wisdom’s bearer and a passionate monster hunting alchemist could create. 

When he tried to offer his forearm to the queen to help her up she simply pushed him away, carefully placing her hand only against his new silver armlet in doing so.

“I’m fine, It was quite the workout there.” she commented pushing her fists together with energy, fighting to catch her breath but at the same time looking full of life “You certainly got bigger from the last time I held you between my arms.”

Right, the last time he was a small fry who didn’t even know how to climb a proper fall, considering his age it was… appropriate for him to be held, unlike now.

Sidon sighed giving her the needed time to recover, after all he wasn’t exactly eager to access Ruta himself, and just… took this chance to look around. The Domain was beautiful at dawn and from the distance, so peaceful, from what almost felt like the top of the world it was hard to believe everyone in his city was in danger.

_ But is it really important? Look at this wonderful sight, wouldn’t you rather leave everything behind and travel? Just imagine how many things like this you’ll be able to see with Link if you leave run away right now. _

His tail twitched and he shook his head, the prince didn’t like how the only keeping him sane was basically a little tune as that… thing kept trying to sneak back in his mind. The Domain was beautiful and while he wished he had more freedom to travel and see the wonders of Hyrule, especially with Link, he had duties and there were people he needed to protect. That he wanted to protect.

"So, Sidon..." he immediately turned his head in her direction, it was so strange to hear her drop formalities like this and just call him by name “Are you feeling ready?” 

“As much as I can be.” He admitted crossing his arms behind his back and gazing over the sleeping figure of Vah Ruta “It’s weird but… I never considered before to walk inside the Divine Beast, I just assumed we would… live in peace with the Calamity gone.”

She nodded, stepping closer and placing a hand against his belt, carefully avoiding his scales yet still offering reassuring support.

“Well, we all have to deal with unpleasant challenges at some point in life.” Right, who was he to complain or show uncertainty when he was talking with a woman who had been thrown into a battle bigger than her since childhood and kept fighting the whole time? “And now, in a time of need, you’re not running away. You’ll make a fine king, someday.”

He only replied with a nod, Sidon knew if he wasn’t the best option for the whole Domain, at least from what they knew, he wouldn’t have been so eager to walk in the Beast. But he had to and-

“Inside there may be a trial, there may still be your sister’s ghost...” He closed his eyes, part of him was glad she was always the straightforward leader, but he didn’t honestly knew what to expect from an eventual meeting with Mipha. Did he miss his sister? Yes. Was he ready to face her? Not likely.

Sidon didn't even know exactly what he was afraid about. Of course, he spent most of his early years trying to live up to Mipha's legacy, but those times were over. He knew they were different people and his goal was to do good things as himself, not doing what Mipha would have done. Was he afraid she would resent him for falling in love with the same man? A bit, perhaps, but he could tell the problem wasn't... that. His memories of Mipha were strong, cemented by years spent between people praising her and- no, it wasn't just the fear of finding out she wasn't the woman he remembered. 

Perhaps a bit of everything, mixed with the anxiety of stepping in one of the most dangerous places in Hyrule?

"Are you ready to go, Sidon?"

He took a deep breath, offering the queen a bright grin and one of his usual confident poses. Even if he didn't feel ready, that was the right thing to do.

"Well my queen, I can't say I am, but-" She tilted her head and offered him a smile that somehow reminded Sidon of his mother "Let's dive in. For the Domain and for Hyrule!"


	13. What does it mean to be Link?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was hell to write, I drafter it and then proceeded to write it. Three times. Nothing I was planning went the way I wanted but at some point you gotta YOLO and post it or you will never finish your story, right? So let's jump in and pray|

“And when I was finally expecting a proper vacation… bam, the High Priest calls me and tells me there’s another Zelda alive, she’s been cursed and asleep for centuries and it’s my duty to save her.”

Link couldn’t help but chuckle as this previous incarnation of the hero continued his theatrical narration of his adventure. For someone so old and who had to save Hyrule twice… this Link was certainly in high spirit, and even if the stories he shared were dark he didn’t seem to be too affected by it. Coping mechanism? Just a terrible sense of humor? Current Link couldn’t tell.

“My first reaction was: she’s been asleep for centuries, she can certainly wait for my next reincarnation. Hylia probably heard me and wasn’t happy because the next thing I find out is that the hero’s blood is one of the key ingredients to bring the Beast back to life!” the man laughed like that was the most amusing thing he heard in his whole lifetime “So there I was: running around the whole land while being hunted by literally any Ganon affiliated soul, not too different from what you had to deal with, uh?”

Link nodded in reply, between the Yiga clan and all the monsters he had to run for his life as well… but he never found it as fun as this Grandpa seemed to. His time in the forest had been mostly pleasant, he wasn’t sure why he was still there but over time other old heroes joined him, Fairy and Wolf, even if he could only see those who interacted with him more often.

“Control yourself, my friend, you’re going to scare the kid.”

Bird’s hand gently leant against the zora’s shoulder, the colorful poncho that kept him warm even in this illusory world grazing against Link’s cheek fins. Even if they were all ‘Link’, each one had a different and well defined personality. And he felt more affine to his blood ancestors, who were more silent and distant than the others in the group, as he kept his mouth closed as well while the rest chatted.

“Oh, come on.” Old’s smile didn’t fade, his wrinkles covered face was still filled with amusement “I was merely joking.”

“You do have a peculiar sense of humor not everyone can appreciate.”

“Well, at least I’m not _ Excuuuse me, Princess _ .”

Everyone shuddered at that, Link only tilted his head trying to understand what was that reference about.

“Sometimes I think Hylia sticks with giving us blonde hair, scales or whatever because the only time she gave one of us black hair he became… that.”

Another group shudder, something told Link he needed to wait to be dead to be filled in and he wasn’t too eager to properly join them.

It was already surreal knowing how he was going to spend his afterlife, no matter how he arrived there: he was the one being watched upon during this cycle, one day he was going to be the one watching over a future Link no matter what… this probably until the end of time.

At least those people all seemed friendly? Tired, perhaps, but friendly and incredibly similar to him.

“A rupee for your thoughts?”

He tilted his head turning to look at bird and shrugging.

“I was just… thinking how we are our own person but at the same time… similar?”

The old men stopped, pretending to think about his words.

“Well, there are a lot of recurring things.”

“Being incredibly close to Zelda but never marrying her…”

Wolf frowned and huffed, silently letting others know he didn’t quite fit that definition. Right, from the little he could see of his life, him and Zelda barely spoke, his true princess was… was… no, access denied to those memories.

“Being incredibly brave, yet reckless…”

Okay, that fit perfectly everyone.

“Being unable to stay in a room with lots of pottery without accidentally knocking something on the floor.”

Guilty as charged, Zelda still teased him about how a precious vase that survived centuries, survived Ganon’s destruction but couldn’t stay in one piece for five minutes after the knight entered the room where it was stored.

“Having a thing for redheads…”

He distractly nodded at that, his eyes still fixed on Bird’s poncho… and then realized everyone was now silent. Looking around Link realized the other men were looking at him with a smirk painted on their old, friendly faces.

“What?”

“Nothing…” Bird chuckled, scratching Link’s head tail with affection like he’d do with a child… and the knight had to admit he really appreciated that kind of gestures “... you’re just really cute.”

“I’m a knight, knights aren’t cute.”

That only got a sincere laugh from the group of heroes now stationed around him and he puffed his cheeks, trying to feign irritation and failing miserably. It really felt like home being there, no matter if all they had was a campfire and imaginary soup for everyone, he genuinely enjoyed sitting on the various fallen logs with his ancestors around. 

But he wasn’t supposed to be there and he knew it.

Another warm couple of jokes were exchanged between them, a quick glance between him and Wolf and Link was now standing up trying to find a delicate way to bring up what had been bothering him for a while now.

“Guys… I appreciate your company but… why am I still here?”

The pleasant camaraderie was immediately gone as the others waited for either Wolf or Fairy to take lead of the conversation, this is why when Link realized he wasn’t going to like whatever the problem was.

“We asked your zora lady not to heal you immediately because time is… different in here.” it was Fairy Grandpa whose body started fraying at the edges, like he was slowly shifting into a different shape “And we need to train you before you leave.”

“...train?”

He blinked, were they planning to show him some kind of hidden weapon skill passed down hero to hero? He wasn’t going to claim to be the best warrior in Hyrule but he did consider himself a good one so…

“You need to learn how to use a sword-” he immediately turned to frown in Wolf’s direction, he knew how to- “With your left hand.”

Oh. 

Link raised his hand to touch his right shoulder, right where Sidon’s teeth dig deeply in his skin. He could barely remember the moment the red zora managed to pin him down but during the few moments of consciousness he had in Zelda’s company… he could recall a sharp pain both in that area and the left side of the body.

Between dealing with what seemed a deadly parasite, a close meeting with a Leviathan like creature and being beaten by Sidon himself his body has clearly seen better days. 

“So the situation is so bad, uh?”

“Your fish friend is prioritizing the infection and what would be a direct threat to your life, your shoulder is-”

“Secondary, I know…”

He spent his whole life fighting in a certain way, a sword felt like a natural extension of his right arm, but if he wasn’t going to use it anymore, not as he wanted at least… then so be it. Link closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath, and when he opened them again Fairy Grandpa was standing in front of him holding an unsheathed sword and his trusty shield.

“When we’re done, I heard the zora want to show a couple of tricks themselves since now you’re one.”

“Until I get rid of the mask.” Or not? Duty called him back to Zelda’s side, the wilds called him on the other side and both his mind and heart were still in conflict about it “By the way… do you know who gave it to me?”

“I know who made it, kid, but how it arrived in your hands is a mystery for us as well.”

Well, at least that helped Link take off the list of people suspected of being behind his unexpected delivery.

He spread his legs, balancing himself in a defensive position and holding up a sword he didn’t even remember getting. The right arm, now held behind, felt incredibly heavy and the knight knew his mobility was incredibly limited with it, probably a warning of what he was supposed to expect once awake.

Right, awake… when he woke up earlier he forgot everything about his meeting with the men, was he going to-

“What the mind forgets, body and heart remember.” Grandpa Fairy had never been discreet about the fact they could see in his mind “Now… are you ready, kid? Show me what you can do.”

There he was, the Hero of Time, in all his glory. The edges of his body were no longer blurry and he was in his younger self’s body, the green tunic he wore during his whole adventure protecting his body, and his eyes no longer warm and kind but filled with determination and seriousness.

When did they even move in the middle of a clearing? Most of the other heroes were gone, only Wolf and Bird were still watching from the sidelines.

Link charged.

\- - -

“This is… underwhelming.”

Sidon didn’t know what he expected to see inside the Divine Beast, but after observing the ancient machine for decades with both fear and devotion he expected… more. Zelda left him free to explore as she waited in what was apparently the control room.

There were some useless, giant gears moving inside and a… mini guardian thing walked out of a corner startling him before continuing to walk around pointlessly. He found himself wondering what things were like when Link stepped inside to stop the creature, everything seemed unnaturally peaceful there.

No, it wasn’t just peaceful, he felt… safe. 

Which didn’t make sense. How could he feel at home in the place where his sister lost her life? Yet it was like something was quietly welcoming him.

The prince sat down on the cold floor, water barely reaching his hips, listening to the mechanical sounds of Ruta, wondering what Zelda even expect him to find or do. How was he even supposed to find a way to pilot the beast if the only way to activate was Link’s still missing Sheikah slate.

The queen wasn’t being helpful as well, Sidon was apparently ‘supposed to figure it out by himself’ and left on his own. So much for being in a hurry to protect the Domain, uh? And he didn’t even know where to start looking…

_ ‘Perhaps… _ ” that voice!  _ “the problem is that you’re still looking at what me or Link would do instead of wondering what Sidon would. _ ”

It took him a long moment to find the courage to turn his head and when he finally did _ she _ was there, sitting at his side in her ethereal form. He dreamt to see her again, he feared such a thing as well, but whenever he tried to imagine it in his head it was always something magnificent, she was always this almighty force…

Instead they were just two siblings sitting side by side in the belly of a Divine Beast, the most mundane setting anyone could imagine. Somehow he was glad of that, his heart was now racing in his chest and he was certain his legs wouldn’t have been able to support him if he was standing.

“Mipha…”

The ghostly figure turned her head to greet him with a smile

_ “Hello, Sidon.” _ the way she tilted her head, the kindness in her voice, it was almost surreal how he felt like it had just been a day since they spoke together last time. 

His lips parted many times as he tried to find the right words to break the silence between them: Sidon thought he had so many things to tell her if he ever got a chance, so many questions, but his mind was absolutely blank right now.

_ “Ruta will never show you the way if you keep considering her like a giant tombstone.” _ The prince could almost feel her scales when she caressed his hands with hers. He swallowed nervously, feeling the need to look away at that.  _ “Look at her, she’s still looking like- _ ”

“How do I know it’s really you?”

Again, in his head he imagined a similar scenario many times: he was either overjoyed to meet his sister once more or incredibly sad… he never expected to be angry of all things. Sidon knew she was no hallucination, since he stepped in Vah Ruta every voice in his head stopped, any urge to leave everyone behind and elope with Link instead was gone… so Mipha had to be true.

And after more than a century, after mourning her twice, after picturing in his head their reunion so many times… there he was, snapping in her direction without any real reason. He wasn’t even a man prone to anger, yet-

_ “What is your heart telling you, Sidon?” _

His heart was telling him that wasn’t the reply he wanted, his mind knew his was an irrational feeling because nothing she could say would feel _ right _ , not in that moment. What was his heart telling him? He had no idea.

“I don’t know.”

_ “You don’t know?” _

“I don’t know! How am I supposed to know? Why are you even here? To tell me what to do because you certainly have the solution to all our problems in your…”

Her head tilted, Mipha’s expression was neutral and unreadable at the moment.

“Isn’t that what you’re supposed to be? The one who fixes everything?”

Why was his blood boiling?

_ “Why are you talking like this?” _

“Because- because-”

_ “I thought you were the one planning to ride Ruta....” _

“Well, maybe I’m not since you’re here now!”

_ “Again… why are you talking like this?” _

“Because I’m not perfect as you or Link are!”

It was only in that moment he registered he was yelling at her, he didn’t just jump up from his sitting position to tower over her: his voice was echoing between the walls, it was probably loud enough for Zelda to hear… and he didn’t care.

_ “… perfect?” _

“Yes! Even if it felt like years for me, he purified Ruta in hours and I bet you managed to control the Beast as soon as you stepped in!”

Mipha didn’t answer to that, her ghost was just… sitting there, looking up in his direction with the most unreadable expression.

“And-” He took a deep breath, pointing his finger in her direction “I bet if you were here you would have noticed something wrong before I did. What did I do? I got myself infected and I put Link in danger as well!”

_ “Sidon...” _

“Well, I’m sorry you had to step out of your grave so you can show me how to pilot this thing just because I’m not as good as you are and I don’t even know where to start!”

She didn’t even open her mouth to fight back and somehow that enraged Sidon even more. His gills flared in irritation, his tail waved angrily behind his head and all his fins were pressed together in thin, colorful lines.

“Because guess what, the Domain is once more in danger and for the second time I can’t do anything by myself, I’m forced to ask for help again!” He put emphasis on the last word, it was the second time in five years he had to drag Link along to solve his problems and this time Zelda was involved as well “I’m trying but apparently my best isn’t enough.”

“ _ Sidon… I know.” _

“Oh, of course you know everything even if you’re trapped here-”

“ _ Sidon, sweet Sidon-” _

“Don’t  _ Sweet Sidon _ me, I’m no longer a child!”

_ “I know what’s happening, I see the world through Link’s eyes.” _ The prince moved a few steps back, being slapped in the face would have been less painful and shocking than that  _ “He holds a part of every champion inside him, while we can… look away, at least when we want to give him privacy, we see and hear everything that’s happening around him. _ ”

Sidon’s arms dropped. What? But Link never mentioned anything like that, he only informed his father Mipha’s ghost appeared to him inside the Divine Beast, not that he was carrying part of her soul with him. The rage he felt until a moment ago disappeared in a blink as he gaped in her direction, not entirely sure how he felt about that. 

She knew everything? Assuming she had been inside him since he purified Ruta, the last time he stepped in the Beast, she had… she had been there to hear everyone’s words about her. To see her statue shining in the middle of the Domain. To hear father praise Sidon.

He swallowed, only imagining how he would have felt in her place.

To look around and know everyone was within reach but having no way to let others know ‘I’m here’. To see his family after a century, see how they changed, and knowing they moved on.

For a good moment he put himself in her collar, golden eyes clouding with tears as he could only imagine that torture. If he only knew he could have visited earlier, he… he…

Sidon’s fists then clenched, he frowned realizing she probably got what she wanted: she was more than married with Link, she was one with him to the point she was constantly with the hylian. And that man never even bothered to tell anyone. 

“Well, that’s fantastic then! Why don’t you move Ruta and do the work at my place? Didn’t you move her when you aimed the beam at the Calamity?”

_ “Sidon…” _

“Don’t  _ Sidon _ me!” Sidon didn’t know his voice could get even louder but it somehow did “You’re the one who’s not doing her job here, not me! You should have… you should have moved Ruta as soon as you saw Link fighting against that Leviathan, we lost a great woman because you did nothing! And he didn’t even bother to let me know my sister was still with us!”

The prince knew he was actively looking for reasons to be angry, now, but at the same time all those little things he bottled up and ignored for almost a century were coming out like a wave. This wasn’t how he always imagined his eventual reunion with Mipha… but now that he was living it, Sidon couldn’t imagine it in any other way. 

She needed to know how he hurt when he was little, she needed to know how difficult it was to live up to the expectations, how it hurt his feelings when his plan to save the Domain was basically dismissed by everyone but his father because he was just seen as the overly energetic prince, only being recognized when he and Link-

“And him!” His voice was like a growl, now “He should have told me you were… As much as I feel for him-” there was no need to walk on eggshells around it, if she could see the world with his eyes Mipha probably knew about his confession and… he didn’t even care “the more I spend around that man the more I notice I don’t know him at all. He kept a secret the fact he’s a zora now and the goddess only knows why, I don’t even know why I’m even bothering to play along at this point, and he’s just so… secretive!” He stomped his foot in an almost childish tantrum “Why didn’t he tell me about you? You’re  _ my _ sister!”

While his sister kept silence for most of his words, at that Mipha bothered to interrupt him.

_ “He’s ashamed of it, Sidon.” _

The prince took another step back, almost falling in the small pool of water behind him at that.

_ “We’re a constant reminder of his failure, even if he died a century ago he never really stopped blaming himself about it.” _ A pause as Sidon tried to find words to attack… that. He still wanted to be angry, he wanted to- “ _ He isn’t even fully aware of that, mind you. But he’s not exactly good at reading his own feelings: Link is in denial about half of them, the other half is pushed down. But we’re not here to talk about him.” _

Sidon immediately stepped up, hands waving in front of him.

“What if I want to talk about him?”

Her only reply was a stern glare of disapproval and Sidon suddenly felt really, really small. She was still sitting down in the same spot she appeared, Mipha was barely half his size, yet he felt like a baby in front of her.

The prince’s fins flattened against his body and he sighed loudly, finally sitting down once more, this time in front of her.

The smile instantly returned on her lips.

“ _ Now that you’re a bit calmer… let me inform you it took me a week to have any kind of answer from Ruta, I’m far from perfect and for the first days she perfectly knew I had very selfish reasons to assist Zelda _ .”

He blinked in surprise.

_ “But she’s ready for you, as soon as you will be ready for her.” _

His lips parted but no sound came from them.

_ “I became a Champion because I saw a chance to be around Link, you’re doing this to protect our people, I’m certain Ruta appreciates your motivations more than she did with mines.” _

It was hard to tell if she was serious or not, he remembered Mipha as a selfless person ready to jump in the first line for anyone, spear in one hand and healing spell ready in the other. Still… if it was an attempt to comfort him it was more than welcome.

She was being once again the better person, wasn’t she? What was he even expecting?

The shark sighed, hiding his face behind his hands. Why was he even upset? Why did he want a reason to take her down? It wasn’t Mipha’s fault if her memory had been put on a pedestal, nor Link’s if he didn’t want to share his secrets.

_ “Now… I should inform you once Ruta passes under your control I will leave. _ ” He immediately raised his head to look at her “ _ Between Link’s wounds and his direct exposition to the Mold I will need to give him all my power if we want him to walk anytime soon.” _

Sidon felt himself deflate even more at that: his sister was dead, his beloved one step from following her and he was just… finding excuses to be angry with them. Goddesses, he hurt Link yet he was there complaining like a child, what was wrong with him?

The prince bowed his head in shame, as he started to realize how irrational his outburst had been but…

_ “So, before I go let’s calm down, mh?” _

He met his sister’s golden eyes, feeling once more like a big, whiny baby.

_ “Starting to feel better?” _

He felt his lips trembling.

“I…” there was a long moment of silence at that “... why did you leave me?.”

Mipha finally moved from her seat, floating closer to him and gently touching his crest, he could almost feel her fingers against his scales.

_ “Sidon, my sweet Sidon… I’ll never leave you, that much I promise. Even if you can’t see me it doesn’t mean I’m not at your side.” _

“You mean at Link’s side…” Despite his words, there was no animosity in them, Sidon was feeling increasingly stupid for his previous outburst. Her lips curved in a sincerely amused smile as she tilted her head.

_ “To think I should be the one jealous, here…” _

“... excuse me?”

“ _ Nothing.” _ Oh, her laughter… he didn’t even realize how much he missed it until that moment, Sidon found himself chuckling at her side  _ “But… it’s almost time. Before I go let me say something really important: you were talking like you were ashamed you couldn’t do things on your own so… _ ” Sidon’s tail twitched “ _ You have to know you’re not the only one. Link wasn’t alone against the Calamity, I wasn’t alone when I entered Ruta: there’s no reason to fight alone when it’s not necessary, there’s no shame in having weaknesses, nor in trying to rely on others to cover them as long as you keep trying your best. _ ”

He shook his head, the smile still on his lips.

“ _ The last time we spoke I asked you to take care of the Domain if anything happened to me… _ ” Mipha paused and Sidon’s tail lowered “ _ And you did such a good job. A good leader knows where his weaknesses are, a good leader values others more than anything else… this is why I’m sure even this time everything will be well. Now.. _ .”

Sidon could swear he felt her when she patted the top of his crest.

“ _ Ruta is waiting for us, let’s not be too rude and let’s go say hello, it’s time for you to learn how to ride with her.” _ He only nodded, finally finding the courage to look up at her once more. “ _ We go together, first, so you can get a feel for it. _ ”

Exactly like when she taught him to swim up in waterfalls… Sidon’s lips turned up in the corners.

“You didn’t change much in this century, did you?”

“ _ It happens when you’re a ghost. But enough about that, There’s a domain to save, a knight to heal and I’m really looking forward seeing my niece once more. You should bring them inside Ruta once it’s all done _ !”

It took the prince a good moment to process her words and how she was now grinning in his direction, but as soon as he connected the dots Sidon raised both hands in front of him in defense.

“Oh, nononono. No. NO. I know what I said when I was hallucinating but I’m definitely not considering adoption, I’m too young for that. Not to mention I’m not married. And the fact I will need a blood heir anyway so…”

Mipha was grinning widely in his direction, shiny white teeth showing as Sidon realized he was overreacting.

“Anyway-!” He straightened his back as Ruta’s trumpeting echoed around them, was the Divine beast laughing at him? “Hey, don’t make fun of me!” he said, pouting toward the ceiling.

Mipha lost it.

Her graceful form was curled in a laughing ball mid air and he soon followed her, Ruta joining them with another loud sound.

Somehow… somehow now Sidon knew things were going to be okay in the end.

“Sorry about earlier, I don’t know why I talked like that…”

_ “It’s okay, stress can make us act weird at times.” _

“But-”

_ “No buts. Come on, Sidon- _ ” She floated behind him, her head popping at his side just above his shoulder “ _ You have a Domain to save.” _

_ \- - - _

Fairy had no mercy in combat, not even during friendly sparring, and Link learnt it the hard way.

He could barely swing his sword in the other man’s direction and his boots would sneak between his legs to kick his knees and making him lose balance, if he managed to parry one of his attacks he’d be immediately slammed down by the other man’s shield, if he managed to dodge the first attack he’d only be hit by a quick, second blow.

Fairy’s sword cut in his guts more than once, he had been beheaded, crushed under the other’s boots, had his limbs cut… and even if the pain was just momentary, even if his body wasn’t real and healed as soon as he fell, his opponent never gave him time to breathe.

“Come on, give it your best shot! If this was a real battle you’d be dead by now!”

Link stumbled back up to his feet, barely had time to readjust his weight and the hero of time was charging once more, his master sword shining in the mist and striking like a lightning in the darkness.

Once more the knight made the same mistake, instinctively trying to raise his left to parry with a non existing shield. His limb fell down to the ground, a sharp pain crossed his whole body almost making him scream as it disappeared between green flames, only to regenerate attached to Link’s body. 

He bit his lips, trying to balance himself: in the wild, against monsters, he could be as feral as needed, but he was facing a knight now, he had to fight properly and-

“Oh, please…” Fairy almost growled in his direction, for a second Link saw the delicate glimpses of a golden armor and his face almost overlap with the image of a skeleton, his mind was probably playing tricks on him “If you keep fighting like a proper knight you’ll never even get close to hit me.”

But, on the other hand, Fairy was more than ready to get close to Link to strike once more.

Years of training, tears, sweat to obtain the perfect style kicked in once more: a swing of Fairy’s sword was dodged, the second one brushed against one of the fins embracing his face without leaving any serious wound but when he attempted to raise his hand to strike back he found himself unable to lift his elbow above his shoulder and the other man’s sword hit once more.

“Dead.”

Link let out a strangled sound as the wound in his chest disappeared, this was all so frustrating! He could barely move his arm and- oh.

It suddenly started to sink what it really meant for  _ him _ , he needed his arms to speak, if he could barely rotate his shoulder and his movements were so limited he... okay, one hand signing was possible, he often did that back in the barracks when one of his hands was occupied or when he had to ‘talk’ for long periods of times and switching between arms helped him avoiding being too tired in the end. He could adapt to t-

“Dead.”

Link hissed, his short moment of distraction costed him another ‘life’, Fairy didn’t give him time before charging again, striking once more his chest with the shiny, sharp blade. The knight sighed, assuming once more a defensive stance, trying to figure out an opening in the other’s defense. 

So far any technique he tried was promptly countered, if Link considered himself a great knight he also had to admit Fairy was way better than him, who knows how many creatures and challenges he had to face.

“You think too much, kid.”

Blue eyes darted for a second in Wolf’s direction, he was still standing by Bird’s side, and the knight had to duck down immediately to avoid a new blow direct to his head. Thinking less was out of question, whenever he attempted to let his fighter’s instinct kick in his right arm always raised in half broken movements, yet if he tried to follow proper battle movements the other seemed to be able to predict those.

Dodge.

Another dodge.

And Fairy opened another wound in his throat.

“Dead.”

Link let out a loud scream of frustration, throwing his sword to the ground. Why was he failing so much? He had been trained to be as adaptable as possible, yet losing most mobility in his main hand was debilitating him so much… 

“Let’s take a break, shall we?”

He glared in Fairy’s direction.

“I can continue.”

“No you can’t.”

Fairy sheathed his sword and offered Link his hand, his features changing again, leaving the image of his old self once more. The zora got up on his own.

“I need to talk with Wolf, we need… to do something. Take it as a chance to rest for a moment.” Link frowned as the other two men approached them, Fairy reached for Wolf’s shoulder leaning his hand against it “We’ll be back soon, I think Bird-” They really embraced the nicknames Link gave them, didn’t they? “Also wants to have a little chat with you.”

He didn’t even manage to reply that the two men were gone, he was alone with the ancient man of Skyloft, both sitting in front of the bonfire once more. 

“So…” 

Link interrupted him with a loud huff, he crossed his arms not even hiding how irritated he was with himself. 

“I’m the one with informations about the parella, those creatures existed back in my days… and as far as I know I’m the only Link who crossed them.”

The knight let out a deep sigh before finally acknowledging he needed to be mature, even if he wasn’t going to remember anything about this discussion it was clear everyone was counting for his instinct to help him on the way. Between that and the whispers in his head he was probably going to… do something?

Maybe?

Hylia, he couldn’t even break Fairy’s defenses for a second, what was even the point of training if he was unable to find any parvence of balance.

Bird seemed to notice how Link’s mind wandered, sharing a collective unconscious and part of the memories and thought definitely improved communication between people who were naturally bad at it like the Heroes.

“Okay, let’s talk about that first. You are too… focused on fighting properly, that’s making things difficult for you. You’re not Link the hylian hero right now, you’re Link the zora and instead of thinking about what you lost you should focus on what you acquired.”

He tilted his head, long golden tail slowly waving behind him.

“Remember that last fight against the hinox? Or the ones against the lynels when you were looking for the giant horse? What did you use?”

Blue eyes lowered to look at the long claws, the tongue caressed the sharp fangs in his mouth.

“Exactly. I know you feel the obligation to match the heroes of legends, to hold their name high when others are watching you but… you set your bar too high. Let your instinct truly kick in, forget about what you’re supposed to be like and just be yourself. You can’t raise your arm anymore? Well, you have two extra daggers attached to your toes. Your left hand isn’t as precise as your right one? Well, I guess Revali can be used for more than moving around faster, let him sharpen your movements, allow him to help in striking before the enemy has a chance to hit. And your tail… that’s longer than any other zora I’ve ever seen, it literally drags on the floor: you used it too wrap the red prince in protection, why don’t you try to use it for offense instead?”

Link’s frown grew deeper as he took Bird’s words in consideration, all of this wasn’t… natural. And considering he still had to decide if he wanted to keep the mask or not, the knight found himself changing mind about it every other ten minutes, it wasn’t the best idea relearning how to fight with a body he could not keep in the end. Maybe?

“Tristan…” A shiver crossed the zora’s body, he knew every one of them needed a nickname of sort not to make things even more confusing there but he didn’t know how he felt about hearing his original name so often “We all change. Embrace who you are now, even if tomorrow you will be a different person it doesn’t mean you can’t live your today at its fullest.”

“Fairy is a knight, I’d offend him if I-”

“Kid-” Bird rolled his eyes “-Fairy managed to say ‘Let’s use the scarecrow song’ and teached you the elegy instead because he was panicking. No one here is perfect, no one expects you to be what none of us is…”

They stood there in silence for a long moment as Link thought about how drastically his life changed in the past few months. Since he woke up on the Plateau he did his best to prove to himself and everyone else what a great knight he could be, he vaguely remembered his life before the calamity being the same, then there was the never ending routine in the castle as he served under Zelda… then the freedom.

Oh how he treasured being free, this despite the sense of guilt and everything else, he ended up discovering so many things about himself: he didn’t just love horses, he loved building things with his own hands, he loved fighting creatures when they were clearly stronger than him, he loved to sit at dawn and see the sun rise at the horizon, he loved to play music, he enjoyed his trip to Hateno with Sidon and-

“... and?”

Link shook his head, he somehow managed to stop his trains of thoughts in time.

“A knight lives to serve.”

“That’s true. That doesn’t mean a knight isn’t allowed to seek happiness.”

“I should be content with Zelda’s happiness, thought.”

“Mh…” Bird moved closer, his hand gently caressing the golden zora’s cheek. He was definitely more inclined to touch others than the rest of the Links who joined them earlier “Well… I did live to serve Zelda. I even thought I was in love with her for the longest time…”

Link frowned at the idea, he knew even in his era some people whispered of secret bonds between him and his queen -and he suspected Zelda once had feelings for him- but not once he felt more than platonic love toward her.

“Then I realized I was in love with someone else. And while it wasn’t easy to balance my duties with my personal life… I did it. You could do the same: help her as you can and retain your freedom. Who knows, someday you may even have a wonderful husband like mine. Happiness and duties don’t necessarily cancel each other.”

The knight nodded before turning to stare at the other with wide eyes. A what? 

“Oh, yes, I had a beautiful red haired husband with splendid golden eyes.” An amused pause “And before you say anything about the  _ image of the hero _ let me say no one cared. I’m just casually mentioning it to tell you: you are entitled to your own happiness as long as you’re not hurting others.”

“This has nothing to do with me failing in combat.”

“Perhaps. Or perhaps I’m just trying to say that being something doesn’t negate you the chance to do something else. You can train to fight like a zora in this moment, you can be a feral force of nature as you’re intended to be in this form, but that doesn’t mean you cannot be Zelda’s knight. Or a zora knight. find your own balance, find what feels natural to you… that’s how you’ll get to break Fairy’s defenses.”

Link swallowed nervously, claws digging in the wooden log he was sitting on. He couldn’t really see himself fighting like a beast, not when others were around… that being said those silly battles when he still pretended to be a madman with a stick to help the zora patrols… those were fun.

“I…” he shook his head, Bird’s fingers still gently touching his head fin “I will think about it. Now, what were you saying about the Parella?”

That was easier to discuss than other things, at least at the moment.

“Well, they were around when I was young. I am the oldest Link in the forest, the original hero is lost to us so I cannot say if he met them as well, I only know the Parella were gone when the next Link was born…”

The old man moved back on his seat, fingers passing over his short beard.

“The ones under the Reservoir are husks of what they used to be, undead monsters that bear resemblances to them… the ones I remember were quite different. A mix of a jellyfish and a seahorse, they used to live in a large lake. Mostly peaceful, I can remember it was rare for any of them to have individual names and I remember them being great swimmers. Now, it’s been thousands of years so my memories aren’t so clear but… there’s something curious I wanted to bring up.”

The zora crossed his hands on his lap, leaning forward with curiosity.

“You know your three divine dragons? Back in my days there were three different ones. The one protecting the Parella? Faron. Now, it may mean nothing but didn’t you hear how filled with rage was that voice when it called you Farosh?”

Link blinked a couple of times, it was hard for him to say what was true or not between his memories near the large gate but he assumed that scream was tied to him being a long, golden snake with electric powers and nothing more.

The zora hummed, now with more questions than before.

“What happened to Faron?”

“No one knows.”

“Do you think this is somehow all connected?”

Bird shrugged.

“I don’t know. I just know the Parella disappeared mysteriously like most species from my time, that Divine dragons can get corrupted if your experience with Naydra means anything and that… if I was you I would definitely try to be ready to face something incredibly powerful.” 

“Isn’t that reassuring?” He offered a tired smile to the older man “I can’t even fight properly now and the whole temple is filled with those painful spores that make breathing hard, assuming I am going to face some kind of primordial demigod I can see things-”

“Oh, Tristan… if you trapped a monster in a mill and you were allergic to flour how would you deal with that?”

There was a long moment of silence as Bird grinned in his direction and Link got his gears to turn. Of course-

“Fire!”

The whole underwater temple was unusually dry and filled with potentially flammable spores, if fires in mills would be dangerous because the powders in the air could even cause explosions- a grin appeared on Link’s lips, now matching Bird’s one.

“That’s it, kid. Let the arson in you fly free, find a way to burn everything in your path and open your way to the heart of the temple!”

Link’s only reply at that was finally showing his long, sharp teeth with his widest smile. Oh, he liked the sound of that.

\- - -

Nasan was a simple man. 

He chose to be a nurse and not a doctor because he genuinely enjoyed assisting others, he spent most of his time in the Palace taking care of kids because that was his inclination… and he mostly expected his life to be peaceful and uninteresting as he worked and enjoyed his little hobbies.

He never really expected to be assigned as personal caretaker for the wounded Hero of Hyrule, nor to be dragged in the dry parts of the city to work in a condition that was unpleasant for him.

And he never expected to face wildlife in what was supposed to be the safest part of the Royal Palace.

The tray with medical tools fell to the ground when he entered the Hero’s room and he realized a large, black wolf was now curled at the zora’s side. He almost called security but a single glance from the creature was enough to let him know he wasn’t facing a wild beast, whoever that wolf was it was intelligent- no, wise. And it meant no harm.

“... to think I supposed I was done with surprises for the rest of the week. Greetings… creature.”

The wolf’s tail started wagging its tail and curled once more near the golden zora, uncaring of how its fur got covered in mucus at that. Oh, dear… well, duty first!

“You shouldn’t sit there.” the wolf’s ears twitched “I need to change his bandage, if fur gets in his wounds the risk of infections will increase. Please take a seat on the carpet until I’m done.”

The zora slapped his face realizing he was so unused to interact with anything that wasn’t a zora he just spoke to a wolf, somehow assuming it was going to understand him. Goddesses above, why was he like that? His surprise was great when he returned his attention to the large animal and noticed blue eyes were studying him once more, it grew even more when the Wolf actually jumped off the bed and took place on the carpet as the zora requested.

Nasan’s lips parted, he had so many questions right now… but that could wait. The man recovered his tools from the ground, whispered a ‘thank you’ and moved at the Hero’s side to perform his duties.

\- - -

In the end Mipha and Sidon spent hours together just… talking. There was a Domain to save, yes, but as soon as they moved in Ruta’s lower floor the siblings found out they still had a lot to tell each other and with the Hero asleep and the threat to the Domain moving slowly to the surface both decided they wanted their last moment together to last a bit longer.

The initial wave of negative feelings Sidon had to deal with washed away as they chatted about Ruta, as they discussed how much the Domain had changed, how Muzu was still Muzu and he somehow managed to be a constant in their lives.

The Prince admitted he felt much better now that he could take her off the pedestal, the princess admitted she knew how he felt because she dealt with similar feelings when she tried to be as good as their mother was.

Sidon admitted he felt lost, Mipha reassured him.

They talked about the people of the Domain, about Ruta, about their feelings for Link, and it was only when they stepped in the control room that the prince fully realized how long Zelda had been there on her own.

“Geez, Sidon, you truly know how to keep a lady waiting.”

He felt his scales turning around and probably turning him in the deepest blue, the prince was even ready to flood her with apologies but the amused smirk on her lips somehow reassured him. At least until he realized she was within earshot the whole time they discussed in vivid detail their feelings for a certain man.

If he wasn’t blue before, he knew he was probably a brighter hue than his father right now.

“Queen Zelda…” Mipha only greeted her with a bow.

“Princess Mipha.” The hylian didn’t even bother with formalities, still standing in her climbing set with one hand against her hips.

“It’s good to see you again. I mean, I have seen you through Link’s eyes but meeting you in person is a completely different thing.”

“I should say the same, after all I did follow my knight as you do when I was trapped inside the Castle.”

Both smiled to each other, for a moment almost forgetting of the prince’s existence at their side. He could tell they wanted to talk, he could almost feel their desire to talk about old times, but in the end Zelda only shook her head with a sad smile. 

She had never been a sentimental woman and she wasn’t going to start now just because she was reunited with a long lost friend.

“You were right, princess, I really needed to find the right flow of thoughts to awaken my powes.”

“Oh? And may I ask what you rely upon to summon the Triforce?”

The queen’s lips curved in the smuggest grin Sidon had ever seen.

“My infinite desire to kick the ass of whoever _ dares _ to threaten this land.”

Mipha chuckled and floated at Zelda’s side, the two exchanged a smile before turning in Sidon’s direction.

“Are you ready?”

“I still don’t have a Sheikah Slate-”

“Oh, that won’t be necessary, Sid. Didn’t I tell you? Ruta dresses up according to whoever she deems worthy.”

“Or whoever comes to challenge her.” Zelda piped in.

“So…” Both women stepped to the side, offering the prince full view over the main panels of Vah Ruta. Where earlier there was space for Link’s slate there was now just a single depression in the rock shaped like the zora’s hand “... tell me, brother, are you ready to unleash hell on whoever is attacking the Domain?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's over... it's over... THE hardest chapter for me to write is over. Fun fact, I didn't plan ahead to make LinkxGroose canon in this universe until I saw a gift of the man and I was like "Oh, he also has red hair and goolden eyes, very sidon style. WAIT-".  
I don't even ship skyward Link with anyone but... eh. 
> 
> I just hope Sidon and Mipha's interaction was done well enough, it's hard for me to write them, and I hope Link's interactions with the past heroes made sense.
> 
> AND YES, WOLF LINK IS THERE NOW! Why? HOW? Stay tuned to find out.


	14. Little steps

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moving step by Step because Fairy and Zora's interactions take me forever to write. Fair warning about Fairy being a butt and Bird attempting to sound awesome (and may or may not work out). Also Fairy Grandpa definitely doesn't hold back.
> 
> (Edit: I was few words above the 100k and I had to edit a few words out to satisfy my love for pretty looking numbers, no shame on that.
> 
> WARNINGS:  
(Spoiler-ish)  
Warning for Violence in the 'battle' scene, I don't even know how to tag it properly but one of the characters will momentarily lose his limbs in that part, even if it doesn't last long. Also warning for uncomfortable sexual talk at some point in the same scene.

Controlling a Divine Beast was harder than Sidon ever imagined: Yes, there were no real panels to interact with, weird levers or buttons, if anything things were even more complicated because Vah Ruta built a deep, mental connession and now the Prince was trying to deal with the awkward feeling of having four extra legs and a long tusk. 

And that wasn’t even mentioning the infinite number of suddenly movable parts. It took him a good moment to figure out what part of him was actually his head and which was just the opening roof of the Beast’s head. Not to mention-

“Mipha, you’re not helping!”

His sister kept making fun of him as he waddled around like a tadpole who still had to find his balance, arms wide open and knees bent as he waved his tail around, somehow trying to ignore the weird feeling of having a _ nose _.

“What? And missing the chance of taking full advantage of this? Oh, I wish I could take pictures with the Sheikah slate and show them to everyone. Look, Zora of the Domain, this is your elegant and handsome prince, squatting in the middle of a room because he forgot how to walk.”

“You… I bet it was the same for you at first!”

“Can you prove it?”

The princess floated right in front of his face, a big smirk painted on her red lips. Sidon pouted, this was definitely not how he imagined things to go between them… but then again, most of the stories in his head had already been dismantled with their reunion.

Ooooh, she was so lucky she wasn’t corporeal right now, he was just in the mood to toss her out of Ruta.

“As. I. Thought.” 

Mipha made the motion of pushing against his crest like she playfully did when they were little and even if there was no real touch the prince moved back.

“You just wait, I bet I can find dirt about you if I start searching. Maybe I should ask Muzu-”

“Do that and I will show Link this memory of ours…”

“You wouldn’t dare…”

A snap brought both Zora’s attention to the Hylian queen who had been silent most of the time, she was holding up her Slate and definitely just took a picture of the poor prince in all his glory.Sidon felt his scales turn blue in embarrassment, why would she even-

“Thank you for the wonderful idea, Mipha, this is amazing blackmail material. And I bet our yellow friend would love to see his suitor in-”

“You traitor!” Sidon hissed, suddenly turning in her direction. Terrible, terrible idea as he and Ruta both turned and while he was just a little zora… the Divine beast suddenly moving on the top of her little mountain translated in disaster. For a moment it was chaos, goth Sidon and Zelda found themselves rolling around the control room until the the machine landed on the Rutala River below.

The prince was still figuring out what happened exactly that he realized the queen was now lying on him as the area quickly filled with water. Oh, Goddesses, they were sinking and Hylians didn’t breathe underwater- he took a deep breath, clenching eyes and gills shut while trying to command Ruta to do the same with all her open passages, it was a relief when everything turned dark and he heard huge slams on the distance.

“What a disaster…” he finally sighed, floating stomach up in the water that already collected in there, the only light they had was now the blue hue coming from the main control. And Zelda was laughing at him, great.

“That’s not what people mean when they discuss having ladies falling between their arms, prince.”

“Zelda, _ you _’re not helping!”

“That’s not how you speak to a queen, young prince.”

“I’m older than you! And this wouldn’t have happened if you didn’t take an unwanted picture of me.”

She flipped, spreading her legs and sitting on his stomach like she’d do riding a horse. And while for Zora that kind of contact was absolutely indecent… Sidon knew it was needed considering their current situation.

“I can’t help how funny you look! Short legs, long headfin, unsteady walk… Link has to see it!”

“You will delete that picture right now, queen Zelda!”

She opened her mouth, tilting her head to say something, but a small beep sound coming from her slate distracted her. 

“Ops… well, I will eventually do it. Later. Looks like Paya’s here.”

“You will do that _ now _!”

“Keep practicing, you got this. See you later, Prince!”

He actually tried to snatch her device out of her hands but Sidon wasn’t quick enough, she already pressed some buttons and all he found between his fingers were blue lights that dissolved in the dark.

“Well, I guess if you’re to marry her sibling she has to learn how to treat her you like a little brother as well. I see she already started with her practice.” 

His sister’s voice almost gave him a heart attack as her head appeared through his stomach and that only made the Divine Beast convulse more.

“Mipha, for the last time, I’m not really marrying Link! It was all a misunderstanding!”

Attempting to raise his own hands at that had been another terrible idea, Ruta tossed around and he found himself rolling around the room once more like a little goldfish trapped in a bowl and tossed around.

This wasn’t going to be easy...

\- - -

Training with Fairy Grandpa wasn’t easy… and it still didn’t give Link the expected results. The knight lost track of time in the Forest as he alternated sparring with the Hero of Time and taking breaks with the others. He got to know better Oracle and he didn’t envy him one bit, three times he had to save the day and once he had to fight his way out of a cursed dream… only to die before reaching his final destination for Farore’s trial. He got to know Old Grandpa better and see how his sick sense of humor was his way to cope with memories that centuries after death were still haunting him, the Sailor and his passion for exploration and deep knowledge of stars, the Engineer and his knack for Technology… and Bird.

While Wolf somehow disappeared and Fairy only shown himself when it was time to train, Bird spent most of Link’s free time with him, always working on something while chatting: wooden trinkets carved to resemble animals and people Link couldn’t recognize, baskets made of rushes, little knitted things… there wasn’t really a moment when Bird’s hands weren’t busy giving form to something.

“I don’t get it…” Link finally admitted one day when they were alone and the man was working on a poncho with an intricate blue and white pattern “Nothing is real here, nothing had permanence and you could just snap your fingers and materialize something in your hands, why do you always spend your time creating stuff?”

Bird hummed, threads of wool still slipping between his fingers and the knitting needles as he continued with his work.

“You have enough money to buy yourself anything you need, why do you insist on crafting all the stuff you need by yourself?”

“That’s different. An unknown Zora tossing cash around would raise so many questions-”

Bird chuckled, adjusting his glasses with the back of his hand. Link knew they weren’t really needed but at the same time most Links seemed to treasure what reminded them of being alive.

“Oh, a naked zora running around the Domain will certainly not get anyone’s attention.”

“That’s different.”

“How so?”

“Just… different.” He crossed his legs on the stump he used as seat “And it’s not what I asked.”

Bird hummed once more, blue eyes now studying the small, golden Zora as the fingers kept moving on his little creation. He clicked his tongue before looking away and finally speaking.

“I was created to kill in the name of the Goddess. I never had a family beside Zelda and her father, this because I was found as an infant, crying alone on an isolated rock. A miracle by my city’s standards, our whole civilization was within a day of flight and there was no chance a pregnancy passed unnoticed.” He paused for a moment as Link tilted his head “I don’t remember much of my early childhood anymore but I know I always felt a call to become a knight. I loved carving wooden figurines even back in the days, mind you, but I was literally born to fight for Zelda.”

He paused leaning down his work and reaching for Link to caress his cheek.

“When all was said and done, my job as her knight felt a bit empty. Sure, I had patrols, I had minor monsters to deal with, but it never felt enough to fill whatever I was missing. Then people started to move on the surface with us and I found great joy in raising barns, building houses and collecting materials for others. It was like finding my second calling. Creating is so much more powerful than destroying… “

Another pause, Link… could understand that kind of feeling. And perhaps it was why he also insisted in creating his own tools and items once he got a taste of freedom after the Calamity was gone: it was nice to do things without the help of the Sheikah slate, that poor fox scarf that was lost in the undercity had been his pride for the whole week he owned it.

Fuck whatever was in those caverns who decided to bite it off… maybe when it was all over he could try to look for it.

“And it’s so relaxing. My favorite thing? Knitting.” He got back to his work once more, now giving Link a wide smile “I know you’re about to say _ it’s not really a knightly thing to do _ but, listen: when you reach a certain age you feel cold no matter what, I used to fly around all the time too… there was never enough warmth. We then discovered how to raise animals in farm… for a while it was all the rage. And me and my husband were late in our years but we weren’t going to let all those youngsters have all the fun, you know?”

If Bird noticed Link wincing at the mention of his husband, he paid no attention to it, the knight was still struggling accepting that the first Link -the one that apparently started a whole generation of cursed heroes- was really different from what he imagined according to Hyrule’s legends.

Well, most Links were.

So much for the image of a perfect knight with no flaws everyone seemed to remember.

“We got six sheeps and I got into making clothes.” A pause “Do not look at me so, I was old and my old wounds were aching all the time, I had to slow down. Anyway, that’s when I fully discovered the joys of crafting small things for those I loved. Not just to help, not just to be useful, but because I wanted to see those I loved happy.” The man waved one of his knitting needles in front of himself, smirking “You have no idea how many woolen gifts my man and Zelda got over their last years. And now I craft them for my family, here.” He raised the poncho he was finishing, the silver of the tribal Hylian decorations stood out against the deep blue and there were countless little decorations that resembled little guardians on the bottom. Triangles, horses… and the symbols of the various races alternated between them “So? Do you like it?”

“What?”

“It’s yours! I still have to complete it with the central theme but I think it’s a good fit for now.”

The zora blinked a couple of times in confusion. What was he even supposed to do with it? Nothing had permanence in that place, most Links probably only had their ponchos to wear only because they wanted to, and… it wasn’t even going to come with him in the real world.

Not to mention he was a zora, now, wool didn’t agree much with swimming.

It was a nice gesture, sure, but… unnecessary, somehow? Bird sighed, placing it back down on his lap.

“Geez, I guess I’m just bad with words and all. Not a big surprise, honestly, but which one us is good at _ communicating _, right?” the elder tapped his bearded chin, clearly disappointed his message didn’t pass across “What we’re all trying to say is… uh… what does make you happy?”

“... what?”

“You keep fighting to protect others and that’s great, that’s the Link spirit… but you also keep holding this need to be all and mighty and hold our name up, no matter how we try to show you we were just normal people even if in some cases the circumstances of our birth were… peculiar, sometimes.”

Link frowned but the old man only seemed to ignore him as he tossed the woolen cloth over his shoulders. Oh, goddesses, it was so warm…. somehow.

“You’re stuck battling Fairy without success because you’re not…” Link could literally _ feel _ Bird thinking ‘why are words so hard?’ with a disarming clarity, oh how he related to that “When you fight think about how you feel when you create, I’ve seen you being so happy whenever you managed to make new stuff, and think about what makes you happy.” Zelda, Sidon, his horses, the other friends he made during his journey, creating his own little space… “That’s, uh, more important than anything else. When you’re facing Fairy, don’t think about how you’re supposed to take him down, just focus on the fact that if you don’t take him down you’ll be here with us for a very long time… and you won’t be able to defend what matters to you if you stay here.”

Right… he lost track of time but people outside the forest were probably still fighting their mold infestation and the mind controlled Zora, Sidon was out of danger for now but both the prince and the Hylian queen were now on the first line.

“Exactly. And to join them you have to dispose of a big obstacle.”

“Fairy.”

“You-” His long, fingers pressed against the Zora’s chest “-You need to go in, fangs out, and stop fighting like you’re training, fight like your own happiness depends on that. Which means: everything is allowed. It doesn’t matter how old and strong he is, he’s not stepping between your and your next meal.” A pause as Link blinked in his direction, confused by the sudden drop in seriousness of the discussion “Uh... it was a joke. To lighten the mood.”

The zora, snorted, laughing.

“This wasn’t a very inspirational talk.”

“I know-” The old man threw his hands up, let out a frustrated moan and lowered them once again “Zelda and Groose were the ones good with talking, I’m good at punching things, stabbing them, raising sheeps and knitting. Now go, go, Fairy is waiting for you.”

“Yeah but-”

“Hush. Go, Tristan, and make him suffer. When you’re done I’ll teach you how to make a nice, warm saddle for your horse wife, mh?”

The Zora chuckled, nodded and he was off training once more.

\- - - 

“... is Vah Ruta.... dancing?”

“Nah, it’s just our favorite Prince relearning how to walk.”

Paya blinked, recognizing the voice behind her. Goddesses above, she had no idea how the queen could be so sneaky at times, even with her training as spy the Sheikah couldn’t spot her coming closer. ‘I’m grateful to Sheik for this’ she mentioned, once, shrugging it off… but never bothered to explain further. 

And after a while even Impa stopped asking questions.

“Aunt Zelda!”

She opened her arms, welcoming the queen. She had been scolded enough times for being too formal around Zelda and now that they were alone on one of the Domain’s balconies she wasn’t going to use proper titles or anything,

It was still weird calling her aunt, but she insisted so much.

“How are you, sweetie?” 

“I’m fine. Just… worried. About this whole thing. It’s not… normal? I mean, we’re not prepared for this and it’s so strange, our Tribe is supposed to know what to do in case of any crisis but… we’re… Grandmother didn’t even know what you and Prince Sidon were talking about when this whole story about the Zonai and sealed evils came out.”

It wasn’t the truth, she knew it and Zelda knew it, but even in time of need the cooperation between Zonai and Sheikah to seal away various sources of evil had to stay hidden. Mostly because it was an incredibly dishonor for the Tribe admit they cooperated with a monster tribe to fix issues they weren’t able to control themselves.

Few details had been shared with Paya herself, they were probably waiting for her to become the new chief of the Sheikah before giving her all the missing pieces. She listened to whispers pretending to be asleep or focused on other things, mostly, and even convincing the Village to let her go had been a little personal battle. 

Only when the kept insisting she needed to do it for Link, Impa finally gave in. She was to be escorted by guards all the time, even on the balcony she wasn’t completely out of their view, and there were limitations on how much she could say. 

Paya knew she needed to play smart if she wanted to share more but until then she was just going to follow the rules and hopefully find a way to be open about the little she knew.

“It’s understandable.” the queen placed her hand against her shoulder “I’m grateful for the help you and the Sheikah are offering anyway, even if everything had been lost about this it’s good to have knowledgeable people onboard.”

Paya’s lips curved in a smile, the queen knew and that was her way to let her know she understood the situation. They got it. Probably.

“Of course, Quee- Aunt Zelda. Perhaps you could start by explaining me why Vah Ruta is… uncoordinatedly trying to find her way back up to her usual resting place? I thought the old Champions used all their remaining energy during the last fight…”

“They did, Prince Sidon is taking Mipha’s place. We should probably consider new Champions for the other tribes as well, just for precaution…”

Paya nodded, distractly.

“From your tone of voice I suppose you already have someone in mind. Perhaps those who proved their worth assisting Link during his journey?”

“Yunobo? Yes. That young man is braver than he himself wants to admit. Teba is a father, I wouldn’t feel comfortable placing in such a dangerous position someone with a family. I was considering Harth. For the Gerudo? Riju is an option, she’s brave and she’s growing in a fine lady, but at the same time I’d like to spit on the legends and have a true gerudo_ voe _ step in as protector of Hyrule. And Greta can pack a punch.”

Paya blinked, if there was a joke there she completely missed it. Wasn’t Greta one of the ladies who occasionally visited Zelda from the main city? Thinking about it, whenever the queen took a day for herself she was often in the company of ladies from the desert. And according to the palace’s servants those never really counted as ‘days off’ since she used them to train with them instead.

“But that’s a talk for later, right now our priority is the Zora Prince. And how he’s literally dealing with a crash course in driving.”

“I see that’s… going well.”

Both giggled nervously when Ruta almost managed to throw herself in a somersault by raising her tusk with too much strength. Thank Hylia they still had time and, in case of emergency, they could probably just toss the Beast over the giant Lake Leviathan and call it a day as the rest of them cleared the Temple below. If they found any way to properly access it without gills. 

Paya’s morale fell once more, the truth was they needed everyone at their best, from the wounded Champion of Hyrule that was now recovering from the Prince who was still learning how to walk in his new shell.

But she knew the importance of acting like she was confident everything was going to be solved in the end.

“He established the connession, now he needs to work things out. Even the oldest champions needed their time, it’s too bad I wasn’t around back then.”

Both fell silent, most people in the Domain were staring at Vah Ruta’s movements, even the King’s head shown from the throne room, and the only people still doing anything relevant were the musicians.

“I just don’t get why Mipha isn’t telling him about the underwater canals, that’s how she got up there in the first place… I guess she likes to see him suffer, uh?”

Paya hid her lips behind her palm as she chuckled, cheeks turning crimson as she attempted to find the courage to say what she was thinking. The queen always pushed her to step out of the comfort zone and even if it somehow only worked when they were alone -or with Impa’s company, at best- the Sheikah felt somehow proud of her improvements.

“I… uh… I guess…. I can’t blame her? I mean, we… he did steal Link from both of us. G-go, Mipha, go!” she finally got out, one little fist raised up as she cheered from the Domain in Ruta’s direction.

Like an answer, the giant machine rolled on its side and fell down the hill. Again.

The Sheikah recoiled, as it had somehow been her fault if the prince managed to trip once more on his way up.

“Oh. Ooooh noooo.” Paya immediately turned to look at the queen who had now had a nervous smile on her face as she stared in the hill’s direction “This is bad.” She whispered, cupping her head between her hands.

The Sheikah only felt confused, the beast didn’t fall on the road so what was the issue there?

“I think he fell on Link’s little camp…”

\- - - 

“Well, now that was a big whoopsie…”

“Mipha I crashed his house!”

Falling face first on Link’s little house had been a surreal experience: in part he saw the water in the control room move around and swirl around him, having the place half flooded protected him from a lot of bruises already, in part he saw through the Beast’s eyes and he saw the terrain approach.

He was positive his tusk -Ruta’s tusk- fell right on the little hut he used to store his things.

“That’s probably the minor of his problems right now, Sidon.”

He hissed in her direction before attempting to push back up on Ruta’s feet- which involved a lot of tusk pushing and probably even more damage. He… he wasn’t even going to see the full extent of the chaos, not now, he was going to deal with that later. Mipha’s ‘Oh, my’ didn’t reassure him at all.

“Okay, why can’t I walk straight?”

“Oh, Sid, there’s nothing straight in you.”

“That-” he rolled his eyes “That’s an awfully overused and outaded joke, sister. True, perhaps, but still no longer funny.”

“Times have changed.”

“So have you.”

There was silence for a good moment, only interrupted by irritated huffs from Sidon as he tried to move around. As much as he desperately attempted to coordinate himself there were too many ghost limbs in his head and Sidon’s frustration only grew stronger at any failed step.

By the time he was standing up once more, Ruta’s feet on danger to slip back in the river below. Despite his best intention he did look down in the natural alcove Link picked as his own home and found only dirt, broken wood planks and scattered pelts, meats and books.

Well, shit. Okay, he was going either to buy Link all that had been lost or help him craft his stuff again, his attempt not to roll down the main street and cause damage for the whole Domain didn’t spare his best friend’s little properties.

“He will be fine, he had fun building that, he will have more fun restarting from scratches…”

“You know him well, uh?”

“I’ve been living in that massive multi room inn that’s his mind for five years, I had my chances to learn a thing or two about our friend. Now, stop trying so hard.”

“Excuse me? Are you expecting me to do even worse?”

Mipha floated over him, shaking her head slowly and emitting a ghostly sigh. 

“You’re trying to control Ruta as a whole and while it’s what you’ll need at some point, right now your priority should have control of her legs AND only the entry on the bottom level.”

Sidon stopped moving, floating around in the dimly lit room and listening to his sister.

“Everything has to stay completely sealed because Link won’t probably be able to face the Temple on his own and this is the biggest and safest diving bell we can provide. All you need to do is to walk Ruta in a good position to dive and then either crash on the Leviathan or sit close enough for everyone to enter the air bubble safely.”

The Zora prince frowned, while he was more than ready to send a whole army if needed he experienced first hand how the infection could easily mess with one’s brain and how fast it acted, how long before his own men started attacking each other?

“He’s the only one immune.”

“I’m going to share my powers with you and Zelda as well once Link is back on his feet. I can’t do more without stretching too thin but I should be able to manage it for… at least some time. You’ll experience yourself what’s like to have_ Mipha’s grace_.”

She winked before moving away from him, floating on the other end of the room instead.

“Come on, you big dork, try to reach me and move Ruta on the same time: we go down in Rutala’s River and then up on Samasa plain, just… move it all together. Without thinking too much.” He barely started attempting a new step that Mipha requested his attention once more “Actually, let’s distract you a bit: why don’t you tell me what you and dad have been up to in the past century? I bet there’s a lot I didn’t hear about.”

Sidon took a deep breath, closed his eyes and nodded, stepping forward in water that almost reached his shoulders and starting to talk, trying to think about anything he thought his sister could like to hear.

\---

Fairy was absolutely brutal. Days training together and not once he slowed down to let Link to study his movements or learn a tactic better: whenever he figured out a pattern, the other would switch to another, whenever he was sure he’d manage a dodge, Fairy’s sword found its way to his body.

It was a nightmare.

They were once more in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by dancing lights, mist and a looming forest and now only Bird and a Hero Link was unfamiliar with were there, chatting between them as they followed the sparring match. 

Fairy was young once more, mostly hidden behind his shield and ready to strike whenever Link stepped too close or dared to offer a blind spot. And while the Zora was breathing heavily, tired after what felt like countless hours of fighting, the other barely shown any sign of the match.

“Is this all you have to offer?” The Zora blinked, surprised, because the other rarely broke his silence anymore if not to say ‘dead’... “It’s been days and you still can’t shake off your chains, you say you understand but each time you try to deviate from your own rules you hold back in the end. Do you think you will save anyone if you can’t even do the single thing I asked you?”

Link repressed a snarl, he was trying his best and it wasn’t his fault if his instinct as knight kept telling him to move in certain ways or, whenever he had to strike, that it had to be in certain ways. Fighting was natural for him, it had been so ingrained in his system that even when he was just awake on the Plateau he knew how to defeat bokoblins with no more than wooden branches, his body almost moved on his own while it barely remembered how to eat or that fire could hurt if you got too close.

His and Fairy’s weapons clashed once more, he found himself stepping back at every strike while the knowledge that he couldn’t raise a weapon and a shield at the same time anymore kept frustrating him because the right arm would constantly move before he could think about it and get in the way.

A swipe, a dodge, and the knight’s sword pierced his stomach once more. Before he could recover from the strong wave of pain, Fairy already lowered his weapon, raising his boot instead to kick him in the face.

That felt… oddly familiar.

“Pathetic.” Fairy kicked him once more while he was still on the ground, hitting his left side with strength “I thought I could consider you my equal but I guess all those voices pre-calamity were true.”

Another hit followed and the Hero sent Link rolling on the grass a couple of times, where did he even hide such strength?

“I tried to be nice but let’s face it: you’re a disappointment. The old you died near Hateno because he wasn’t strong enough to do the single thing he was supposed to, protect the princess, and then you needed her to save your ass during the final battle.“

That was unfair. He barely remembered his past life but he knew he tried his best, there was so much out of his control- and their swords clashed once more. Link could only slowly retreat, parrying the barrage of attacks coming from the other as much as he could.

One, two, three- and he was on the floor again, this time holding his own throat where the open wound was sealing by itself once more.

“What were they even thinking? Making you_ the _ royal knight, your father must have paid them a lot.” 

He was still trying to get up when Fairy’s shield bashed against his head, pushing him down once more. Wow, the other usually at least gave him time to get up. Instead he found himself forced to the ground, a weight on the other side of the metallic protection.

“We tried to be kind, we tried to be patient, but the truth is you’re not worth our time. It’s so frustrating knowing we still have to rely on you because our mortal vessels are long gone. Why do you think Wolf is not coming anymore? He’s done with you!”

Link hissed in frustration before using his good arm and a push on his legs to free himself, actually managing to make the other stumble since Fairy’s foot was on the shield that was pinning him down.

“Still saying nothing?” the warrior of time spat in his direction as the Zora prepared for another charge. Even if he was the one who moved first, Fairy’s defense had been impenetrable and he found himself stepping back once more, trying to focus completely on the attacks and not the words of the other “Well, who cares. We have all eternity here. You’ll die in the real world, your friends will die as well because you’ve been unable.” _ clang _ “To” _ Clang _ “Hit me once!” _ Thud _.

Right when Link thought he found his rhythm and had both shield and sword in clear view, the other used his legs to trip him and the metallic surface was slammed against his head once more. Oddly familiar. Again. Link didn’t know why but he knew he hated it.

“Look at you, you’re insulting my bloodline!”

He winced, biting his lips, somehow surprised by the familiarity of that insult. It somehow made him feel weak, it somehow gave him this horrible feeling of having no chances to fight back… and it made him angry.

“But what can I expect from a little cocksucker like you?” 

This time Link actually growled at that. How… how dared he? He was not one of them and even if there were men with feelings for him, Link was never going to-

“I don’t know what you think you saw or heard but it’s wrong.” he hissed, trying to push back once more but only finding his hand pinned back down to heart as the master sword passed through it. Link let out a pained groan, as long as the blade was in place the wound wasn’t going to heal, the pain wasn’t going to fade.

“_ You _’re wrong. Not good as a Hylian, not good as a Zora. I’m done pretending to be nice toward someone who isn’t even trying.” 

Link’s head tail waved as he attempted to push back with it, he only felt another pang of pain as an array of arrows pierced it, anchoring it to the ground below. Why? He tried to train with other Heroes, he could spar decently enough with the others but this one, how did he even become so strong?

“Really, what was I expecting? Your sister? She made me proud, she took a fallen Hyrule and made sure people could connect once more. You? You’re like the Sky Chosen.” Link felt his anger rise, he did not like what the other was saying at all. He had barely any memory of Aryll and he knew she was the better one, sure, but… how could he compare him to Bird? “There’s only two of your kind here and the first one got us all cursed, what will you do? Finish his job and destroy Hyrule?”

“Leave him out of this…” That Link was clearly… not normal, but he had been only kind the whole time and he was within earshot, it was… fair. 

“I can leave him out of this but that doesn’t change who you are and what a giant waste of space you are. What are you planning to do now that your beloved Zelda can’t come and save you?”

“I don’t need her to- agh!”

The Zora felt his skull almost crack as the pressure applied against his head increased, one of Fairy’s feet was still on the grass but his full weight, chained mail and all, was now on Link’s face.

“You know what? I should shatter your spirit, it can’t be that hard if Guardians of the Silent Realm can do it, right? Oh, that sounds like a plan. I wonder how long it takes to do so, the other freak already told me how painful it is but you won’t mind it, will you?”

Another attempt at freeing himself was cut short by more arrows, Link’s whole body ached as most of it had thin pieces of wood piercing it.

“And then I will take over your body. Save the day, get rid of the mask and fuck the queen. Because that’s what stories are all about, right? The knight always gets his royal reward.”

Blue eyes widened in shock for a moment and he tried to scan the other’s mind for any memory regarding any person he had in his past life but all he could see were tiny fragments of him standing behind Zelda during some important ceremonies, elegantly wrapped in a knight’s armor and ready to protect her.

“Why are you saying so much bullshit?” he finally cried in his direction, growling.

“Because today was your last chance and we’re tired of your crap. We’re taking over, kid. Don’t worry, I’ll put that little body of yours to good use.”

Link tried to use his short Zora legs to kick him off, but even if Fairy only had minimal balance he dodged it. Immediately after his attempt he felt something slice his legs off in a single swipe and he screamed in pain while is brain barely registered Biggoron's Sword was still there, not giving his spirit room to reattach or regenerate his limbs. 

_ Nothing is real _, he kept repeating himself, but his brain and his still present attachment to the real world made the wounds hurt like hell.

“I wonder-” Link could hear the malicious amusement in the other warrior’s tone “What does your queen sounds like when she’s screaming with pleasure?”

He saw red. Any sensation of pain was suddenly overwritten by insane outrage, whether he was serious or not how could he even speak like that? Of his Zelda? Protectiveness overcame his own frustration, rage his instinct of self preservation.

With a snarl he forced his only good hand to move, having the blade cut between his metacarpal bones to free itself and ignoring the pain. His fingers darted in the brown boot’s direction and he grabbed it, pulling the warrior down as his own wounds were still healing. Taking advantage of Fairy's lack of balance, Link pushed the shield away, tossing it as distant as possible from the two and moved his stumps away to give his legs enough time and space to rebuild themselves.

"Don't you dare!" He hissed, trying to push himself on the other man, showing his teeth and snarling almost like an animal "Don't you dare!" he yelled catching Fairy's arm with his good one and then blocking the armed one with his fangs, no longer caring abut how savage that whole scene had to be for those watching. 

He still felt the arrows planted in his head tail, sure, but his focus was now on making sure his message was delivered: no one could mess with his Zelda. Especially not one of the knights that were supposed to protect her. 

Fairy's knee hit his stomach, taking his breath away for a moment, but the Zora barely flinched as he anchored himself to the warrior's tunic with his free arm: he lacked reach, perhaps, with it- but it still had the usual, vicious gripe that allowed him to ride horses without a saddle and hold weapons three times the size of a normal person.

"Get. Off. Me." 

The hero of time's order didn't matter to him, Link only found himself fighting with the other man for dominance as he tried to push himself over the Zora, using his legs and his shoulders to lift himself.

What a show, two Heroes of legends rolling in the dirt, one of them biting the arm of the other and making sure he wouldn't get the Master Sword on his other hand or anything. It didn't matter.

When Fairy almost got things his way and almost pushed him away, Link hit his nose with his crest, momentarily making him lose control. When Fairy attempted to kick him off, Link only wrapped himself to him with even more strength, moving the injured tail around the hylian's body and holding him as close as possible.

It was a graceless brawl, they were both kicking and pushing on the grass and Link kept hissing, Teeth still planted in the other man's leather gauntlet. Link lost count of how many times he had been pushed with both shoulders against the grass and how many times he managed to push the other back, his brain only snapped back in place when he realized the man under him was laughing.

He blinked, staring at him and still not daring to let go, still feeling his almost feral rage starting to fade.

"Finally." Link tried to blink once more but in a moment he found himself lying back on his back, Fairy kicked him off so fast he didn't even see how that happened. The only difference was that he clearly didn't do it in order to hurt him, not this time. Was... was he holding back this whole time? Link shivered at the thought "This is what I wanted to see." The elder's hand was offered in his direction and the Zora reached for it, accepting the help in getting back to his feet "You see, now? There's no correct way to fight, just the most efficient one."

The golden zora was still upset when the other wrapped one arm around his shoulders, pulling him closer in a goofy half hug.

"Sorry about all that, we needed to push you a little." The other two Links were approaching, both clearly satisfied with the current results "But we had some results, you actually hit me. If I had a nose it would be bleeding right now."

Oh. Oh, right, that counted as a hit. 

"By the way, Bird, no offense intended."

The poncho knitting man shrugged, still smiling in their direction as Link was mentally processing their fight. How... he should be ashamed for how he acted, yet they were there, praising him.

"None taken, I know why you said those words. I'm just glad we're finally making progress, here."..

"Why...?" The Three men turned their attention to the Zora "Why did some of those words hit me so hard?"

Bird sighed and raised his hand to scratch the scales on Link's tail.

"Repressed memories, things that are somehow best left in the past and in part you will need to face someday. But now you need a break, even because you're facing him next."

Link turned his head and almost jumped from the shock: he didn't notice the change but Fairy's whole body shifted once more and now in his place there was a tall ghost, his spectral body mostly covered in an ancient and broken golden armor, his face an expressionless one eyed skeleton that stared at him without any feeling behind it.

For a second he was offered a glimpse, an explanation, and he saw three timelines flowing side be side and him witnessing them all and meeting his head by being beheaded by someone stronger than him in the two he lived. He both failed and succeeded against Ganondorf, but he... he...

Link shook his head as the gate offering him a little view over Fairy's past closed, the last thing he could register was him having dreams and visions of the two timelines where he doomed Hyrule and the knowledge that in the only life where he married he then ran away, overwhelmed by those, hid himself behind the role of a knight, overworked himself to death and actually welcomed death when it came... not even knowing his wife was pregnant when he ran away.

Why all those memories? Why now?

"Well, kid... We all- we all have things we're not proud of." Link's lips parted, was this his way to comfort him? To tell him it was okay if he wasn't as perfect as he hoped because even the one considered the strongest by them all had his weaknesses and despite being a great guide for them all and a savior of both Termina and Hyrule he still... made mistakes? Big ones?

"I see..." His tail lowered to the ground, Link didn't even notice when the arrows disappeared but it was probably at the same time the Master Sword and the shield disappeared from the field. His eyes widened realizing the weapon at his side wasn't the Sacred Sword anymore but, like the shield, just a normal army equipment.

"The sword rejects you when you fall from grace." was Fairy's only comment as he stepped back, taking place under a large tree that was now in the large clearing "Take your rest, Child of the Wild, Mipha will start healing you soon but we still have time. When you're ready, come to me."

The mist engulfed him and the Zora was left alone with the two elders. There was a long, long moment of silence as he scratched his fins, trying to digest how he just behaved and fighting with his inner self to tell himself it was okay, it was what the others wanted, then the blue scarfed Link wrapped an arm around his shoulders like Fairy did earlier.

"Well, I know it's break time but... I was thinking: you will have a lot of enemies to face once you reach the temple, right? Lucky you, I'm the local specialist in large scale invasions..." The grin on the man's lips didn't reassure the Zora at all "... have you ever considered learning how to ride a spinner?"

“Oh, Tristan..." Bird also wrapped his arms around the golden Zora's shoulders, not even trying to hide his amusement "I'm sorry to inform you there is an 85% chance that you will feel sick while trying to learn that."

The mental image of Wolf riding a giant, stone top toy barely popped in his head and he also saw Scarf do the same. He was almost tempted to ask the men where his grand-grand-grand-something-grandpa went but at the same time he knew there had to be a reason if he disappeared and he had other priorities at the moment.

"Well, nausea or not... I guess it's worth a shot."

\- - - 

"Wait, did you just call him... Link? I thought... Link was the zora."

"Oh, he is. But this one is Link as well, just a different one. By the way, farm boy, your princess wants you to know she never resented you for leaving as you did."

Paya blinked and exchanged a confused glance with her guards who, for once, seemed as lost as her. The wolf on Link's bed only let out a small whine and tilted his head, one of his ears twitching as he studied the queen.

Zelda shrugged, dipping a piece of cloth in warm water and cleaning link's face where he bit his lips, either from pain or from whatever trial he was dealing with in his unconsciousness, and blood started to spill.

"I don't have the cacophony of voices that must be in Link's head but I have dreams. Most of the past me love to send me cryptic messages that I only seem able to decipher when it's the right moment."

He nodded, apparently considering her reply enough.

"I admit my surprise, thought, I had no idea what she meant when she said one of your vessels withered with age but the other one didn't. It's fascinating, your hylian body decaded but the one you never got to use still somehow manages to exist? I'd love to study this phenomenon."

A small growl warned her as the fur on the animal raised to show how much he disliked the idea.

"Fair, you want to keep this vessel available for eventual future crisis, two Links are better than one... I do still have one small question, thought."

The animal tilted his head in the other direction, kind blue eyes were apparently giving attention only to Zelda but the small tilts of his ears at the smallest sound shown how he was paying full attention to all their surroundings.

"Why are you here?"

Paya frowned as the Wolf only replied with a sigh before curling once more against the Hyl-Zora's side. Was he there because he wanted to protect Link? To comfort him? No, if Zelda's words were true and the closer to death Link got and the louder the ghosts of his past self -different people? Previous incarnations? It was hard to tell- in his head got, there was no reason for the only one of them who could appear in the real world to get the clock ticking on his only body.

She could see the gears in the queen's head turning as well.

"I see, you have a role but your time has yet to come. Well, Link... welcome on board. Now, be a good pup and jump off the bed, didn't anyone tell you it's bad to cover a wounded person with fur?"

There was a groan of disapproval at that but with a jump he moved back to the carpet again and the zora nurse present with them finally dared to step forward and return to her work.

\- - -

"And then Rivan accepted the dare and swallowed the puffer fish whole. The Madman! He dealt with stomach ache for a week before he was able to train again with Bazz and the rest of the guards."

Step after step, Sidon was making it. The first part had been incredibly complicated, he couldn't coordinate himself, but when he started to focus on the conversation with his sister instead things started to get better. Ruta still felt like an alien presence and her alien limbs still rubbed his brain in all the wrong ways, but there was no longer a strong conflict between keeping his own body still and moving hers.

Now, his wasn't the most gracious walk the Divine Beast ever had, but they were at least moving. They reached the plain and the Prince had been at least careful not to accidentally step on any deer or Link's horses, and now they were slowly moving toward the Reservoir. 

Rocks felt like little, frail eggshells under his imaginary feet, but he proceeded nonetheless toward the large Dam. As much as Mipha insisted Ruta's incredible materials made her way lighter than her size suggested... he still felt like a whale in a pottery room.

"Rivan had always been a wild boy. I remember when you both were kids: he once tried to climb the upper palace and ended up dandling from the fish's crown for hours before someone managed to take him down."

"Well, he's no longer such a troublemaker. Mostly because he's a single dad, now, and even if his daughter is now able to take care of herself he's still fully embracing his paternal role."

"Oh... and when will you embrace yours?"

The teasing tone of voice didn't pass unnoticed. Again.

"Mipha. No."

She giggled and he frowned, wondering if it was just his impression or her body was getting fainter and fainter over time.

"It's so weird to hear about how you all grew up and changed, but it makes me happy. And I'm glad you have friends who care so much about you. But... what happened to Rivan's wife? I don't think he ever mentioned her in front of Link either."

"Oh, he... never had one. He doesn't really... like people that way. I only know he had some kind of deal with the mother of the egg but I never asked for information, I was just happy to see him happy, I guess?"

Mipha only hummed, floating midair, and Sidon let himself float. One step, two steps, he stopped only when it was finally clear he either had to crash the Dam itself to reach above or he had to fly, the surface of the hills surrounding it were just too steep.

"How did you get down? "

"It looks like my fun is over here..."

He suddenly opened his eyes, almost throwing his ride down the hills once more. Was she about to disappear? Like that?

"It's time for you to visit the underwater tunnels that directly connect Rutala River to the Reservoir."

The prince gasped, almost offended. That bastard, that's how she moved Ruta so easily up and down! 

Deep deep down he knew this was something he missed for his whole life, a sister who wasn't an ideal model to mold himself after but an equal to... well, be like that. The woman who was almost worshiped as a protecting guardian in the Domain could laugh, be annoying and pull small pranks, that was something he was only going to be allowed to cherish for a little moment.

On the other hand: what the hell, Mipha?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, my headcanon about wolf link being in botw is: his hylian body aged but since he never turned really wolf again his wolf self never aged and still exists... Also Fairy is definitely going to properly train Link now (Not to mention, spinner time!)
> 
> I hope you liked this chapter, see you for the next one!


	15. We're getting there

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I did finally update. I should mention I've been really close to abandon this story due to.... stuff. Both because the quarantine kind of made me stress a lot and writing a fanfiction that's themed around it can be harsh at times AND because I had an unpleasant experience with some parts of the people following it. More in the comments in the bottom but- in very short terms: please, I don't like to be a grump and I won't bring this up after this chapter, but I got a few people comparing my work heavily to Linked Universe. And being unpleasant about it.
> 
> The largest amount of people following this story is wonderful and I'm not letting a vocal minority ruin my experience and the one of the people who are following me. This chapter is on the shorter size but it's me trying to get back to this story, I apologize for that.

“Man, that was… something.”

Training with Scarf was very different from training with Fairy: Link spent the past few… hours? The whole time laughing and challenging others. Unlike most of the warriors of the Forest, Scarf genuinely loved fighting and the whole time Link could see how passionate he was while explaining tactics and showing him moves.

It wasn’t ‘training’ for him, it was ‘fun’.

“Well, at least you learnt something good, mh?” the hero asked with a wink before patting Link’s shoulder with energy “I knew asking some of our local zora to join would help.”

“Right…” the knight picked up his spinner, that thing was probably going to weight a ton in the real word but it wasn’t a problem there “I had no idea I could do _ that _with my tail!”

“If it’s of any consolation: I didn’t know either.”

Now he only needed to pray something would stick with him even once awake. Link took a deep breath, closing his eyes and feeling… different. His body felt more real, he could feel his shoulder itch where the bite was and he knew his body was starting to wake up. 

That was the reason everyone suddenly decided to interrupt the brawl, wasn’t it? He still had to face Fairy before going, and even if time was a somehow abstract concept in that place they knew he had to go.

“You look… better.”

The knight nodded. his fingers closing more around the stone surface of the bizarre weapon he was holding.

“Yeah…” he paused, opening his eyes and staring at the misty sky above “Yeah.” he repeated, then, with more enthusiasm. He did feel better, physically and mentally, but as much as he wanted to stay…

“I think it’s time to go, I’ve been here for a bit too long.” Scarf only nodded in his direction in answer “I… thank you. All of you.”

The spinner disappeared between his hands, turning into small flickering lights that slowly faded between them. It was nice to spend time with people who understood him so well, at the same time he knew it wasn’t his place to be. Yet.

“Don’t mention it, we’re family, right?”

“Right.”

Scarf gave him another friendly pat against his back and turned around, waving his hand as he hopped away, disappearing between the shadows. Not one for big goodbyes, uh? Link chuckled before turning around.

There was no path but he somehow knew where he was supposed to go, wasn’t it all in his mind anyway? There was just one more thing… and as if he called, Bird was already there, waiting for him on the newly formed road. 

“Time to say goodbye?”

“For now, yes.”

“And how do you feel?”

Link shrugged, offering Bird a smile. While he knew the others could easily access his feelings he did want to try to put things into words for him, after all the other shared a lot of things with him during the past… days? Months?

Probably way less than it felt for him but it was irrelevant as long as he was there.

“More at peace, I guess? Eager to go out and see what I will manage to do after being trained by so many of_ us, _ a bit anxious because I’m aware I’ll forget everything that happened here once I leave… but I will be fine.”

“Of course you will be. You will remember what you need to, when you need to, trust me. And in case you can still count on us to yell in your head.”

He chuckled, wasn’t that the norm, at least for now? Once his body recovered he was probably going to miss hearing their voices all the time. 

“Anything I can do to repay you all?” 

Bird’s reply was a chuckle as both stopped where the road finished and the wild grass was gradually replaced by a pale flowerbed.

“Be kind, have a good life and always remember you’re not alone.”

“No, seriously, I-”

“Pay it forward, Tri. Someday it will be your turn to help, for now just enjoy being pampered a little. We are family, right?”

“... right.”

But that was the time to part. He turned in Bird’s direction and, without the need to add more words, threw his arms around him, wrapping him in a warm hug. They enjoyed the closeness for a moment, the older one patting the top of Link’s headfin as he grew used to, and then it was over. Bird took a step back, moved behind him and placed a hand against the knight’s shoulders.

“Go get him, banana boy.”

Before Link could reply, the other was already gone. 

With a determined look on his face, the knight stepped forward. Soon the eerie forest was replaced by a bright aura, light enveloped the whole area and the only way to have some direction was following a faint shape visible at the horizon. A… castle? It was a familiar one, somehow, yet he had never been there. Before he could elaborate more thaat memory, the hero of Time was there.

Still in the shape of a skeleton devoured by time, still wrapped in his broken armor, the warrior had been waiting for him to be ready. And now… he felt like he was.

No pleasantries were exchanged between them, both offered a bow, raised their sword,had the tip of their weapons clanged together as they greeted each other and prepared for the fight.

He wasn’t going to fail.

\- - -

“So this is what the wall decorations were for!”

The people of the Domain wondered for years why there was a perfectly flat surface in one of the corners of Rutala River. It was like a huge door, that couldn’t really be opened and that was only decorated with the symbol of the Domain and what seemed to be insignia of past noble houses around it. It lead nowhere, it couldn’t be moved and Sidon read that when someone tried to dig behind it only found a rock wall. 

And now the prince knew why.

The carvings around the symbol of the Domain weren’t old insignia, they were runes only the divine beast could use to teleport from a body of water to another. Magically moving from a place to another was weird, he saw so many options and so many locations just within his reach (What even was that temple below the sea?) but he needed to stay focused: the Zora reached forward, touching an imaginary picture of the Reservoir and in a second the Beast was swimming in its waters.

It immediately started sinking.

The prince let out a gasp, starting to swim in his little prison and soon realizing his instinctive movements as a Zora weren’t helping the situation at all, if anything Ruta was shaking in all directions and going down even faster.

“Sidon! Sidon, calm down-”

“Sister, what should I do?”

The plan was to get everyone inside the Beast and _ then _ move to the bottom of the lake, not to go down on his own. His attempt to push himself up using his feet only had the ancient machine do a flip underwater.

“Take a breath, relax and imagine you have something under your feet.”

“What?”

“Ruta can walk on water, Sidon. What do you think she was standing on when you approached it the first time with Link? Picture in your mind a solid ground under your feet and then push up.”

“But there is nothing here!”

“That’s- Sidon, what do you think Ruta was standing on when the Blight was controlling it? Va Medoh can fly even if with its weight and its speed it should be impossible, Rudania can resist any temperature, Naboris is an all terrain vehicle and Ruta can walk on water- just… believe it!”

Mipha had a valid point there. The Zora shut his eyes, locking out everything he and the Divine beast could see, and only tried to focus on the sensation of a solid surface under his body. When that didn’t seem to suffice, he dived underwater and placed himself against the floor, trying to trick his mind.

A low _thud_ and everything around him shaking confirmed him that he had been successful.

“Good job, Sidon…”

Even without opening his eyes, he could feel his sister presence at his side and for a second he almost felt the sensation of her fingers brushing against his crest. Oh, how he missed that kind of gentle touch, she always pet the top of his head whenever she was proud of him.

“You still need some practice, but you’re ready to go.”

A grin spread all over his face as he flipped in the water and turned to look up at the ghostly figure of his sister who was still floating above him. A glance in her direction and the smile fell. 

There was no need to spell out what was in her mind, the longing expression on her face was enough for the prince to understand.

“It’s time....” he only whispered, knowing perfectly the little moment they could cut for themselves was over. The child who had left behind wanted to beg his sister to stay just a bit more, the prince was instead ready to accept the imminent separation. Link needed healing and their people needed to be helped, now that he knew how to move Ruta enough to do what was necessary they had to return to their duties.

“It’s time.” she confirmed with a nod “This time, I’m abandoning Ruta for good. My whole essence will move inside Link and once he’s healed I will stretch myself inside you and Zelda as well… but once this ordeal is over…” the woman offered him the sweetest smile “I think the Domain has a new guardian already.”

The prince bit his lips, that confession of trust filled him with mixed feelings: it was hard to tell her goodbye a second time, it was also a great moment of pride knowing she considered him a worthy successor.

“I… thank you. I will not disappoint you, dear sister.”

He blinked and she was gone.

\- - -  
  


“And where does this come from?”

Paya knew the wolf never left Link's room, there were guards outside the door and one of her 'guardians' even stopped following her around in order to keep an eye on the unexpected presence... still, somehow, the bedroom where Link rested was now filled with random items. There were wands, a weird stone top that seemed too large and heavy to be a proper toy for children, musical instruments for days and trinkets the Sheikah couldn't even start to understand.

Zelda only frowned looking at the big wolf that returned at the golden Zora's side. He huffed, jumping on the mattress and curling at Link's side once more.

"Don't give me that attitude, Link."

Paya turned to look at the queen, she was standing with both hands on her hips and didn't seem too surprised of... whatever happened in that place.

"You know how organized Link is, right? This place is probably his worst nightmare-" The Sheikah blinked at Zelda's words, that was the problem for her? Not the sudden appearance of dozens of ancient treasures? "-You're going to make him faint again as soon as he wakes up."

That got the animal's attention. He flattened his ears, sat up to take a look around them and then let out a low whine.

"Well, I'm certainly not going to tidy this place up in your place."

Paya blinked, now squinting in the Queen's direction. Wait, were those two having a conversation? She licked her lips, fidgeting trying to find the courage to step in the middle of the supposed discussion, but the Wolf preceded her and whined once more, passing both paws on his face in what the Sheikah could only read as both an admission of guilt and a plea for help.

"Well, if you don't have opposable thumbs you should have been more careful about where you dumped your stuff in the first place. I mean, why did you even bring him boots? He can't wear them with those feet..."

A grumble was the reply as the queen held up an old looking pair of boots. Red, covered in dirt, with ridiculous wing decorations on each side... they definitely reminded her of a cheap version of the Pegasus Boots she read about. And about to fall apart.

"Wait..." green eyes darted from the old footwear to her own boots "... are those for me?"

Link replied with a pleased howl. Paya scratched her chin, trying to find her voice as the queen studied the item with interest. Her gears were clearly turning, she was unfamiliar with the boots and probably curious to see why it had been delivered to her.

"Mh... I suppose testings will be in order. I can perceive they're infused with magic but they're not telling me anything else. Now...." she sighed, placing everything on one of the few empty spots at her side and reaching for the Wolf on the mattress. There was one short moment of tenderness as she gently caressed the sleeping Zora's crest, then she crossed her legs and returned to businesses "There is more we need to discuss."

The animal replied with a nod in her direction, then both heads snapped in the direction of the only remaining guardian Paya had. Silence. The Sheikah shifted uncomfortably under their gaze and, after a moment, he tried to approach Impa's granddaughter.

"Perhaps we should leave, lady Paya-"

The girl sighed, of course she was going to be dragged outside as well. So far any attempt to have a moment of privacy with the queen had been unsuccessful and, of course, she was about to be escorted out. The Sheikah nodded in her guard's direction, ready to follow, when a shadow jumped between them. She swallowed, realizing the wolf was now standing between them.

"Well... it looks like our friend here has a different idea."

"But, my queen, I cannot possibly leave lady Paya alone."

Zelda only tilted her head with the most annoyed expression on her face. Even as she acted pissed off, she managed to maintain that aura of superiority that defined her.

"What are you insinuating, Konadrolk?"

Both Sheikah froze on the spot. If warriors left Kakariko, they always used fake names and he introduced himself as Keelk, how could she even-

“Are you trying to insinuate I represent a threat to lady Paya? What a problematic diplomatic incident that would cause…”

Paya saw the warrior freeze for a moment as the queen elegantly crossed her legs, holding her chin up. As lovely and as casual Zelda could be most of the time, it was moments like this that reminded the Sheikah she was not just a nerd with a fancy crown on her head but a queen who stared at the calamity for a century and held it back.

Both the queen and her knight always had that more than approachable aura, they were incredibly professional but lovable and kind… and both had the ability to magically flip a switch and turn their fierce attitude on, suddenly being as intimidating as a Gold Lynel interrupted mid-nap.

Konandrolk took a step back, glancing around the room quickly, attempting to find an excuse to stay. As soon as his eyes met the Wolf he seemed to regain confidence.

“This creature, I’m only worried for this creature’s presence, Queen Zelda-”

She cut him short, getting back on her feet and glaring in his direction. a growl immediately followed from the animal in question.

“Are you implying the Hero of Dusk himself is a threat? Just because he’s not presenting as a Hylian? How dare you after all he and the other heroes did for us.” Zelda didn’t need to raise her voice to appear imposing.

“My lady, my orders are not to leave lady Paya unattended-”

“And she will not be left alone. The Hero wants to speak with her, we should respect his desire, I think there's no better guard to make sure of her safety.”

The Sheikah opened his mouth to protest, seemed to fully realize he had no real ground to protest without sounding incredibly suspicious. Paya gulped when the man glared in her direction, silently reminding her that no matter if she was the elder’s child, she had no right to share secrets of the tribe.

As soon as the door closed, both Link and Zelda dropped their posture. ANd the wolf started howling.

It wasn’t just a feral howl, she noticed after a few seconds. The animal was tilting his head back and forth to create a melody, as weird at is seemed. The Sheikah girl frowned, turning for a second in Zelda’s direction, who only replied with a shrug.

It was just three notes, repeated three times, then the Wolf walked in on the spot almost following his tail and sat down on the floor as a little, magical circle appeared around him.

“Now we can speak freely, they will hear only what they want to hear.”

Paya emitted a low screech as she jumped, did the wolf suddenly-

“Oh, so you can talk.” was Zelda’s unimpressed comment as a surprisingly calm and warm voice came from Link himself. The animal's lips weren’t moving at all, yet he somehow spoke to them.

“Only as long as I can keep this spell active, this body is no longer as strong as it used to be.”

She squinted in his direction, reaching for her pockets and taking out the blue ocarina she received from the golden Zora.

“So I was right. The songs we use are spells.”

“Indeed. Think about a bird’s chirps, how many information they can store in short, quick sounds… imagine long, complicated spells magically compressed together and within reach of anyone who can play an instrument or modulate their voice.”

“It sounds… quite dangerous, considering how many enjoy the art of music.”

The wolf laughed and Paya found herself holding her breath. It sounded so… warm and kind. Such a contrast with the dangerous and regal aura of the animal.

“People can make music, Zelda, but very few can call themselves Arcane Conductors. That kind of magic doesn’t just happen by mistake… but that’s a discussion for another day. We are just amused the ocarina found its way back to its legitimate owner.”

“... it belonged to the Royal family, didn’t it?”

“Indeed, but as I said it’s a talk for another day. Tell us, child-” The wolf turned in the Sheikah’s direction and she took a step back “I know your people try to solve Hyrule’s problems by themselves, unless the Cycle is repeating itself, but I fear keeping secrets is not going to help anyone this time. Do tell us, before my magic runs out and our voices are no longer masked by my spell: what do you know about this situation?” 

“Uhm… right.” Not a lot of time, uh? Paya gulped, eyes now glued to the swirls of magic energy around the wolf. “So, as you know the Sheikah have been active for a very long time, right? Some old tales seem to hint our tribe existed even before the the Kingdom of Hyrule itself.”

She felt nervous, all she had were oral traditions and half truths but… it was better than nothing, right? Paya closed her eyes, took a deep breath and tried her best to pretend she was alone in the room. No Link, no Zelda, just she and the mirror she used to practice talking with others.

“I… I may have overheard grandmother Impa talk with other people.” she wasn’t proud of spying on her own family, yet Paya couldn’t help herself when she found out Link had been finally found “And there’s this legend that’s about a long lost time when people still lived above the clouds and… I don’t know how much truth there’s in this, really.”

“Go on, child. I am familiar with lost cities in the sky.” 

The sheikah opened her eyes, the Wolf’s tone was so… calm, yet she could hear note of amusement in it. Paya licked her lips, nervously bringing both hands to her cheeks. Okay, he seemed to believe her, right? And Zelda wasn’t interrupting or speaking.

“I… uh… Hylia is the Goddesses’s chosen one, right? Uh… but she’s not alone. Legends also speak of dragons who once preceded the ones soaring in our skies. They have incredibly long lives but they’re not immortal, right? And sometimes… they get replaced? When their time is coming?”

The Sheikah interrupted her talk once more. Goddesses above, she was just reporting what she heard but at the same time she felt like a buffoon bringing up legends old as time itself.

“So… legends are one of the three dragons of that time got greedy over time. They established a kingdom over time, They had subjects ready to serve, They… didn’t want to let go? So when their replacement came They swore to bring it down. Details are lost to time but this creature corrupted their own people, those… jellyfish things we saw-”

“The Parella.” 

Paya nodded in the Wolf’s direction, briefly taking note of how Zelda was scribbling on her slate. Link’s ears suddenly flattened once more, he squinted, shaking his head just a little before returning his attention to the Sheikah.

“I… uh… it’s really vague here but it seems there were only few Sheikah left and that forced them to cooperate, for the first time, with a monster tribe.”

“The Zonai…” Zelda didn’t even lift her eyes from the slate while nodding to herself.

“Right… the lost tribe. I am so sorry I can’t offer much more but it’s been so long ago and even our records are incredibly vague. They speak of a special sealing water but we’re unsure what that’s referred to, perhaps it’s just a reference to the fact water is apparently able to slow the spreading of this illness or-”

“Sacred water…”

Both women exchanged a confused glance before bringing their attention to the Wolf. Link did seem bothered by something, his ears kept twitching like he was dealing with loud sounds.

“Dear child, placing together what you tell us and what someone who lived in that era knows… the creature you’re referring to is most likely an old dragon named Faron. There is a Link who met her, he doesn’t sound too fond of those moments-”

Paya gasped. Legends occasionally mentioned Heroes guarding Hyrule even past their deaths but… if the Wolf’s words were true, how old had this ghost to be? 

“Powerful, full of herself, she served Hylia but ruled over her people with fear, threatening them to death if she- can you not yell like this?” The wolf almost snarled toward the wall, talking to an invisible guest as, for a couple of seconds, the fur at the base of his neck stood up. Link quickly regained his composure, returning his attention to Paya "My apologies, child, it's quite crowded in my head at the moment. "

The light under his paws started to flicker, their time was almost over.

“We will finish our talk later-” he whispered in Zelda’s direction “But in the meanwhile I thank our brave, young friend. We had a few clues pointing us in that direction but you gave us a so much needed confirmation.”

It felt… nice being validated, especially from someone who used to be a great hero in the past of Hyrule. Paya’s cheeks felt warm and she chuckled nervously, at least between her and the past Link they put something together.

“Now we need to figure out how to proceed and what to expect. A Self corrupted ancient dragon cannot be an easy foe to face and we should be ready to expect the worst. We will discuss-” The magic circle started to give up, fraying at the borders and emitting sparks of energy around the Wolf’s paws “This body is weaker than it used t be, I cannot-”

The spell broke mid-sentence and the rest of his words turned into an annoyed wail. The three exchanged a quick look and Zelda was quick stepping in and continuing a conversation they weren’t having in the first place.

“Come on, Paya, can’t you be honest with us? It’s clear the Sheikah are involved-”

The white haired girl gaped in her direction for a good moment before realizing why Zelda just addressed her like that: chances that at least her guardians were listening on them were high without Link’s magic.

“Auntie… I… I’m sorry. I really am. If we had anything, Grandma would have told me. This isn’t something we can just hope to contain by ourselves, I’m… I wish I had answers. But I promise I’ll try my best to help.”

It was their farce now, wasn’t it? Paya felt horrible knowing she was lying to her own people but at the same time...this was no time of honor and pride for the Sheikah, not when so many lives were in danger.

“Then, Paya…” The queen ruffled the Wolf’s fur as soon as he jumped back on the bed “Let’s pray that our combined best will be enough.”

\- - -

Swords kept clashing in the isolated garden as the two warriors danced around each other.

Fairy was still overwhelmingly strong, his attacks made Link’s arm shake whenever he had to stop any of his attacks, but this time it felt… different.

He still got hit, he still _ died _ over and over in the beginning, but training with the rest of the Heroes gave him a little edge that was slowly helping him gain ground in battle: they were right, each Link had a very different style and things to offer and that was what he was also trying to find.

Fairy was raw, unbridled power. He was a warrior forged by countless battles, he lived on the battlefield and died on it (An arrow to his eye? It was just a flash but Link was sure his last thoughts had been _ thank you _.), but he wasn’t perfect.

He lacked Bird’s finesse, only a few of them had a proper training as knights after all, and while he rarely offered any opening while defending, when he rushed in for the kill there were little, minuscule windows. 

Fairy also lacked the quick adaptability of people like Engineer: where he lacked in combat knowledge and practice, he added by using literally all he had around to his advantage. The old skeleton clearly faced countless foes but after too many years only fighting monsters while under Zelda’s banner, side by side with other soldiers… he lost a tiny bit the skill to handle the unpredictable.

He had patterns, now that Link was paying close attention to it it was a little easier to predict where the hits would land. Yes, the old warrior covered himself using force when needed, but with that heavy armor and giant weapons… Link had one advantage over him.

He was a quick, slippery Zora. He was_ fast _. And literally every part of his body could be used as a weapon.

The tail wasn’t good only to balance himself: he could swing it around to give himself momentum, he could use it as lever against the ground if he needed to push himself up quickly, he could use it to attack if he turned quickly enough after a hit with his sword.

The claws on his hand weren’t the only sharp parts of his body: fangs and the long toes made for exceptional daggers and they were perfect for surprise attacks to the joints of any armor, especially the toe ones.

And it suddenly made sense why he was so incredibly effective in combat as a properly trained Hylian knight but struggled so much in his new body: the legs were too short for him to move as much as he used to. His tail, long enough to touch the floor, offered his enemies an easy spot to hit if he guarded in his usual ways. 

His proportions were off and while it changed nothing while dealing with larger enemies, lynels or honixes, it meant life or death while facing a smaller and quicker opponent like the creatures of the lake. 

Even with one arm too stiff to move, even if his body was still something he was learning to fully control… he was finally learning.

His sword hit the warrior’s helmet with a loud clank, the next thing he knew Fairy’s sword was piercing his stomach and he was being thrown to the other side of the arena. Somehow it didn’t hurt him anymore.

He had a new style to learn: it involved rolling on the floor, kicking and biting whenever he had a chance to step close enough. He had to relearn how to fight and now all the frustration left space to an incredible excitement.

Ah! Link couldn’t want to see the surprise painted on Zelda’s face when she was finally going to see him fight! And Sidon’s… but he didn’t know who he used to be, it wasn’t going the same as saying “look what has become of your knight!”.

He didn’t know when he stopped worrying, perhaps it was as Scarf paraded around in his postman outfit or as Oracle danced on the battlefield as an adorable pink bunny. They all shown him their goofiest sides and, as much as it was weird admitting it… it helped.

Link let out a loud “Ah!” full of pride when one of his kicks managed to hit the warrior’s chest and pushed him back. It was probably a shade or his imagination since the skeleton had no real face but Link could swear he saw him smile.

“Much better kid…”

“And you’ve seen nothing…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, as I mentioned above, I have a few words about my work and some comments I received, especially on Tumblr. Linked Universe. I’m not going into details over what happened but please, please stop comparing my work to theirs. I never read it, at this point I get irritated enough just seeing art about it to even consider reading it and let’s say some people ruined it for me constantly comparing all I did to *that* work (which, for all I know, is great. I’m not putting that in discussion) and telling me I wasn’t portraying the Links correctly. I blocked people on discord and while I’m not blocking anons on tumblr (some people send me the best suggestions with that) I’ll delete anyone stepping in telling me “but X shouldn’t do that” or “you should more of X, he’s like this, this and this”. Criticizing me because I wasn't following it. I refuse to force my work to be compliant and obedient to another person's fan-work, just because we have a few similar attributes
> 
> My work is far from perfect but I used to have fun writing it, it took me quite some time (even with the quarantine) to find the strength to return to it (and even more not to just drop the whole project) and I just have that request for you. 
> 
> That being said: I’m not saying anything against that AU. Please keep supporting the author and showering them with love, I’m really happy they created a world that so many enjoy and that dragged even more people in the fandom. Kudos to them. Me having a negative experience with some… a bit too involved fans doesn’t mean I don’t respect a content creator who did so much for the fandom. Thank you for understanding, everyone.


	16. Good morning, princess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A slower chapter as we get ready to tackle the underwater temple! 
> 
> I just wanted to thank everyone for your support and comments. Let me say this before I personally reply to the other comments (which will happen tomorrow because it's way past midnight): I have no intention anymore to drop my work, I blocked all people who were being toxic about it and I find you all amazing. All I can say is: I hope not to disappoint. May you have fun with the new chapter.

Sidon returned to the artificial lake’s pier with the moon already high in the sky. The prince didn’t interrupt his training with Ruta until both his stomach’s protests became too loud for him to ignore.

Leaving the Divine Beast standing in water proved itself as a challenge, three times Ruta started to sink as soon as Sidon stepped outside, but in the end he managed to leave her as she was. Somehow. He wasn’t too sure on what made a difference but he was too hungry and tired to do further investigation.

What caught his attention as he was swimming slightly below the surface was.... something sliding right above it. The prince frowned, deciding to be careful and reaching the dry land before showing himself: the Reservoir already proved itself a dangerous place, the last thing he needed was to accidentally say hello to a water wizzro or anything like that.

The prince patiently waited for the creature moving on the surface to move away before cautiously moving his head out of water… just to be greeted by a yawning dog who was resting right next to the spot where the prince decided to show himself.

The first thought was ‘what the hell’, immediately followed by the realization that the beast was everything but threatening considering its posture. As soon as his brain processed that the big, black dog meant no danger the prince immediately turned to check what was disrupting the peace of the lake… just to realize the ‘thing’ sliding on the surface was Queen Zelda.

“... what?” 

The woman’s body was hovering slightly above the lake, almost reminding him of Zora kids skating on frozen puddles in winter, and… probably training with her sword? It was hard to see between the splashes of water and how dark the whole area was.

The dog made a sound that almost resembled a chuckle and then howled, getting her attention. Sidon bit his lips, not really sure where she got herself a pet in the middle of a quarantined zone but knowing her he was almost afraid to ask.

“Queen Zelda sure is something…” he muttered to the animal, getting himself out of water and sitting next to it, stopping just for a second to admire the unusual white patterns on the animal’s muzzles. He didn’t even know dogs could have intricate drawings on their fur, for his limited knowledge of terrestrial fauna he never really saw any creature like him… then again he only really traveled outside the Domain to seek for Link.

The Zora sighed, shaking his head and returning his attention to the Hylian who was now approaching them. As he suspected she was carrying both sword and shield, the woman was probably training by herself instead of sitting around the Domain… and he couldn’t help but admire her dedication considering they were in the middle of the night.

Sidon watched as she kept drawing circles on the surface, carefully slowing herself down as she moved closer. By the time Zelda was at the pier she was literally jumping from one step to another, causing irregular splashes.

One, two, three… and she disappeared underwater when whatever was holding her up stopped working. Considering who he was dealing with and that the Dog’s response was yawning once more and sprawling his body on the marble floor, Sidon didn’t even bother worrying and just waited for her head to pop up.

“Queen Zelda…”   
  
“Prince Sidon…” she pushed her short hair back with a giggle, getting out of water and taking place at the dog’s side, caressing it with her still wet hand “I see you met Link.”

The Zora blinked, staring at her for a couple of seconds and then turned his attention to the animal. Did… did he transform again? No, it didn’t feel like Link, unlike the golden eel.

“You… named your dog after your knight?” He finally dared to ask, which only caused her to laugh.

“First: wolf, not dog.” at those words, the animal let out another howl. Sidon simply avoided to comment he couldn’t really see differences between dogs, wolves and coyotes. “Second, I didn’t name him. He is Link, just from a long, long time ago. Right, old friend?”

The prince frowned, looking down at the animal.

“Excuse me?”

“The legend of a hero saving the land of Hyrule whenever it’s in danger isn't just a silly story. I won’t get into details because I fear they’re unclear to me and the Links as well, but there are countless  _ me  _ and  _ him _ and there will be more in the future. As long as Hyrule exists, we also will…”

Sidon didn’t comment on that, while it hardly seemed possible… he witnessed enough incredible things lately, too many to be surprised over the idea of Link and Zelda reincarnating or by standing in front of what apparently was one of Link’s past lives.

He waited in silence for her to continue. The reflection of the moon on the lake was a beautiful sight, everything seemed so calm and peaceful it was hard to believe under the lake something was growing, threatening the whole Kingdom.

“Did you know Link hears voices?”

The prince turned in her direction once more, Zelda wasn’t looking at him and the wolf was apparently resting at her side.

“I… Mipha may have mentioned that, yes.”

“Four of the voices belong to the past champions, all the others belong to the men he used to be.” The Wolf made a huff at her side and she rolled her eyes “Well, yes, it’s a more complex than this. Some are born Link, some became one, you could say a Link  _ happens  _ when it’s needed, unlike me…” a pause as she ruffled the animal’s fur “There are times when naming or finding a child Link is even said to bring misfortune… but that is irrelevant now.”

He nodded in her direction, not entirely sure on why she was sharing that kind of information with him. Yes, he was glad to finally learn more about his beloved yet at the same time he didn’t know what to do with this.

“One of the Links knows what probably lurks in the depth.”

That got his full attention. So they knew what they were up against?

“Truly?”   
  
“Mhm… sit with me for a while, Sidon, there’s much we need to discuss. Both about our current situation and Link.”

\- - -

“You’re getting faster.”

Link grinned in Fairy’s direction after finally managing to dodge a full combo of attacks from him. The shield had been completely abandoned in the end and the Zora was proudly dancing on the battlefield, barely touching his sword and instead focusing on using his whole body instead.

He didn’t know how long they had been training together, it could have been hours, it could have been a lifetime, but it was finally starting to pay off. Link was stronger than the average Hylian, stronger than the average Zora, and he he had countless little aces up his sleeves.

Being incredibly agile helped, yes, but that wasn’t all. Unlike other Zoras, his genetic was weird, like someone had the general idea of what an eel was like and just smashed all the defensive systems in one small package.

He almost had an heart attack when one of the other Zora Link told him his blood was poisonous: one of his last memories was Sidon biting into his shoulder, for a moment he worried he hurt the prince while trying to protect him. It was a relief hearing that it wasn’t the case, unlike Hylians Zora had no problem eating raw eels.

And he was… gross. And proud of it. He never expected that his horrid slime could be used like a weapon, not that he could condition how much he could produce, but the time with the other Zora proved him the contrary. Yes, he was the only eel there but it wasn’t like they never crossed their path with someone like Link before.

“Speed isn’t everything I can offer, old man!”

He wasn’t sure when he stopped trying hard and started having fun, but it happened. And that was when he truly started to improve: Link was jumping around, sliding on the ground, kicking and trying to unbalance the other. 

The key against Fairy was constantly changing pattern: he was really good at countering when he knew what to expect, switching between styles allowed him to avoid lethal blows. Going from attacking with a sword to slashing with an Ancient Battle Axe or to throw a spell with a meteor rod allowed him to keep Fairy on the edge all the time.

Perhaps his journey felt like a torment when he tried to look back to it, but being forced to learn how to use multiple weapons and adapt. Sure, he walked around in his Hylian armor, trying to look as dignified as possible not to tarnish his queen’s name, but distant from everyone’s eyes he didn’t mind to bite the dust, nor to steal weapons from his enemies whenever it was needed. 

Bombs, ice, rocks, all was fair game in the name of survival. And now it was truly paying off.

When Fairy raised his shield to parry his sword, he hit him with a thunderspear instead, causing him to drop his defensive item. Yes, he couldn’t summon all he wanted in the real world, but his Sheikah slate was full of supplies and he had even more back in his little corner, he just had to prepare himself properly.

Even if it meant confessing to everyone he was, in fact, the man they’ve been searching for.

Dear Hylia, he wasn’t going to complain if Sidon decided to be upset with him for that. He had been the worst possible friend. But, memory or not, that was going to change.

Slamming a foot on the ground, he forced his surroundings to change. Countless white petals started dancing around them as flowers disappeared, leaving only the cold stone of the temple under their feet.

“And what are you trying to accomplish, child?”

Link didn’t reply, he only jumped back, tapping his side where a dreamlike slate was and summoning the heaviest and slowest weapon between his hands. Barely able to hold up Daruk’s Boulder Breaker, he prepared himself for a charge, using any double handed weapon with a single limb was a challenge, but as long as he dragged them and used his own movements to give it momentum he could manage.

There he prepared his trap.

Tricking an enemy in battle was a shameful behavior, especially a fellow noble warrior, yet that no longer mattered. 

“Just planning to prove my point.”

As expected, the other charged in, he saw Link wield an Edge of Duality, an Ancient Axe and a Savage Lynel Crusher, Fairy knew what to expect at this point and Link knew any further attempt to attack him with the same scheme would have turned against him.

Fairy was incredible in reading patterns and countering… and that was exactly what Link counted on.

“That I’m the grossest Link that has ever existed.”   
  
He heard a ‘hey’ in the back of his head, yet he didn’t let that voice distract him. As soon as Fairy stepped close enough, Link let go of his weapon, tensed the muscles in his tail and brushed the floor behind him with it. 

The Zora barely dodged the warrior’s sword but even if he felt some scaled fall off he kept his focus: the slime he used to hate so much proved its worth as soon as Fairy stepped on it, the armor not offering enough grip and making him lose his balance, that’s when Link decided to strike. 

Using his toenails to anchor himself on the floor, he pushed himself against Fairy’s back as the warrior was still trying to regain his posture. Their fight then lasted only a couple of seconds as Fairy tried to push him back, at first, then to crush Link under his armor’s weight falling behind.

The Zora grinned as soon as he felt Fairy’s body move down and, certain the other couldn’t have a strong grip on him, he used his claws to move around the man. 

The same second Fairy’s back hit the ground, the Zora pinned him down from above, a wide grin painted on his face.

“Gotcha!”

There was a moment of silence, then the older warrior started to laugh and soon Link followed him. The Zora rolled down to his side, gills clamped on the sides as his cheeks hurt, after all this time it just felt so good to finally land a proper hit on the other.

“You got me.”

He turned toward Fairy and was greeted by the sight of the warrior in his best days, green tunic and all. He never met him in life but at the same time he felt like it was a rarity to see such a happy expression on him, it made him treasure the moment even more.

“You got me. Good job.”

He instinctively rolled over the floor and threw his arms around his neck as both kept laughing like complete idiots. Unlike Bird, Fairy wasn’t prone to return physical affection, yet he felt an awkward pat on the back of his tail.

“Okay, you did it, can you stop covering me in snot?”

“Oh, please, nothing here is real. And it’s not snot, for your information-” Link placed both elbows on Fairy’s chest, looking down in his direction with the smuggest grin “it’s _mucus_.”

“Because that makes it so much better.”

“Pfh..” He felt his whole body finally relax as he poked his finger against his grand-grand-grand-something-grandpa “You’ve been a gross Zora as well, you have no room to complain.”   
  
“Excuse me? A gross Zora? I was absolutely handsome, for your information.”   
  
“You had a nose.” he replied, poking Fairy’s long one “What Zora has a nose? And-” Link continued, interrupting the other man’s protest before it started “You were balder than me, you had the opposite of a crest. And that’s not even talking about the gills, how is it optimal having gills on your neck? So little surface to breathe…”   
  
“That’s how Zora were back in my days, you pesky little brat!”

“All I hear are excuses, grandpa. Look at me, I’m fully embracing being the grossest Zora of my generation”.

The other man huffed with amusement and Link rested his head against his chest. Even if lacked physical bodies, they both felt exhausted. It was after the longest silence that Fairy finally spoke again.

“It’s not going to be easy once you wake up.”   
  
“It’s never easy but that’s okay, we’ve all been made to solve problems normal people couldn’t, right?”   
  
“Your enemies will be faster than me.”

“I will just have to be smarter than them, then.”   
  
“You will have no room for mistakes either…”   
  
“I’ll be the first line of defense for Hyrule and the people I love, I will not make any mistake.”   
  
“Good…”

Another goofy pat followed, he barely felt that one as well but it was nice to know Fairy was at least trying. Now it was the time to show he took all he could from the past heroes’ lessons, wasn’t it? 

Link reluctantly sat up, sitting on his knees and slowly wagging his tail. 

“I’m going to miss this…” he commented rotating his left arm, perfectly aware that between the infection, the damaged gills and the other wounds, healing a joint was too low priority for Mipha to focus on it “But I will be fine. Thank you for everything.”   
  
“Mh. Don’t get yourself killed. okay? It’s too soon for you to move in with us.”   
  
“I will try not to.” Link closed his eyes, feeling something in the distance call for him. His time was over, wasn’t it? He felt as if he’d been fighting forever, he hardly noticed when Mipha’s power started healing him and his body started to fray at the edges, he was feeling like a fish being reeled in.

“Good luck, son.”

He opened his eyes one last time to smile in Fairy’s direction, then everything went dark.

\- - - 

Bird had been waiting like the other Links, ready to step in if needed, and it had been a pleasure to see the results of their combined efforts. He wanted to believe the kid all the cards to save the day, now they just had to sit back and support him as they could.

Perhaps it was worrying knowing their voices would fade more and more in the distance as his body healed, but he still preferred knowing the kid was better than having a direct channel with his mind.

The man put on his warmer smile as he approached the Hero of Time, kneeling down at his side as the other still rested between the grass in what was a small, village forest. Kokiri Village, uh? The last place where Fairy felt safe and happy, of course he retired there when the kid left.

“Looks like he’s ready…” he whispered, reaching for the other’s head and caressing the messy, blonde hair. As much as Fairy avoided to give physical affection, Bird quickly learnt he also treasured being on the receiving end as long as his spaces were respected.

“I still don’t know why you and the pink bunny insisted to have me train the kid. You’re both… better.”

The knight rolled his eyes, sighing. Being the first one to be trapped in the forest, he had the honor to see each one of the Link grow up and live their adventures… and he could still remember how tragic Fairy’s life had been.

“Because he needed  _ you _ .” Bloodlines mattered to the kid and that was a fact, it was a blessing having not one but two great warriors he descended from between them. But that wasn’t all. “And you needed it as well” he added, ruffling the wild fringe.

He heard the warrior mutter something under his breath but didn’t bother to investigate further. No one was free of traumas in that place, nor of insecurities, Bird was already proud of how the other handled the young boy’s presence.

“You know what, old boy?” he asked placing both hands back on his lap, well aware the other probably almost reached his limit of interactions for the next few years or so “You did a great job too.”

\- - -

Sidon was still processing the sea of information the Queen dumped on him. The woman went straight from chirping happily about the arsenal apparently other Links sent in since no one knew what to expect from the Temple.

“He usually finds what he needs to solve it inside…” she said “But we’re marching inside as a group, that’s a very non conventional approach, we can’t expect the usual rules to apply here.”

Right, because apparently in countless reincarnations Link usually had to face everything on his own, either because he was infiltrating an enemy base or because the Goddess decided to stop his journey with a trial. It felt so… unfair. 

The Prince reached forward to caress the sleeping Zora’s cheek, as bold as this gesture was in their culture he felt no shame as his fingers touched Link’s most delicate scales. He knew Mipha was at work and he couldn’t wait to speak to him again, there were so many things he wanted to tell him. Perhaps he felt guilty for violating his privacy and trust because Zelda shared a lot of things with him, but at the same time he was glad to understand more of his best friend and... they really needed to talk.

It was going to be difficult, of course, because he didn’t want to force Link to admit he was the golden Zora until he felt ready, but Sidon wanted to make sure the other knew he had a friend ready to help him when needed and that there was no need to face everything on his own.

It had been no surprise to hear that Link often got himself hurt trying to solve everyone’s problems by himself, it made sense when she explained him how Link probably felt it was his duty to fix his ‘Zora situation’ since he was the one who caused it.

And Sidon felt like a horrible man when he only replied with a “Well, he could stay a Zora” before realizing his desire had no real importance: If Link wanted to become a Hylian once again, he was going to help him in his search for a cure. Even if it meant accepting once more Link was only to live for one third of Sidon’s lifespan, even if it meant losing him to the Hylian crown once more.

His happiness, his comfort, those were the only important things, especially after witnessing how brave and selfless he could be when needed. Link didn’t hesitate to help him with Ruta, Link didn’t hesitate to throw himself in the middle of this madness for Sidon’s people, if the prince had the chance to return the favor at least a little… he wasn’t going to step back.

“I know it’s a bit selfish…” he finally dared, without taking his eyes away from his beloved “But… if he returns under your service, wouldn’t you mind sending him to the Domain, now and then? If he truly doesn’t know how to rest… it would be my pleasure to turn his duties in a relaxing vacation as long as he’s in my father’s Kingdom.”

The prince caressed the other’s cheek once more and then gently touched his crest, Sidon’s scales turning and coloring his face in blue. He was really starting to cross some lines in terms of decency, wasn’t he? To think they weren’t even alone in the room.

“Honestly?” The voice of the queen sounded almost indifferent as she kept messing around with a weird, metallic rod with a sphere on the top “I hope he’ll stay here. He was withering away in the castle.”   
  
“Oh…”   
  
“But here? From what I’ve been told he’s been crafting, he is traveling around all the time, he’s exploring… he’s spending time with his horses and I swear to the Goddesses I’m half expecting him to visit, one day, and ask me to forge a marriage certificate with that mad mare of his.”

The prince chuckled nervously, he saw Link around his horses and he did look at one of the three with extraordinary affection. Sidon was still terrified of every single one of them.

“What I’m trying to say…” Zelda placed the tool on the floor, right next to the wolf who was, once again, napping “He looks happier here. And while I resisted the Council’s pressure… I think I will pick a new captain of the guards once this is all over.”

“I thought you-”   
  
“I lied, Sidon. I’ve been waiting for him to come back if he wanted to but… his happiness comes first, especially after all he sacrificed for us all.”   
  
The Zora nodded in her direction, he felt the same.

“Whatever he chooses to do, I will do my best to support him.”

As friend, as partner… oh Goddesses how much he wanted to be his partner. Sidon also wanted to be angry for being deceived, to let Link know how much pain he caused when he disappeared but... his feelings could wait. Zelda was about to say something else, but a small grunt got the attention of all presents in the room. 

In a second Zelda was sitting at Link’s bedside, holding his only sane hand and the wolf was on the other side of the mattress as Nasan, Paya and Sidon stood behind them. Link was finally waking up, even if he didn’t seem completely conscious yet.

“Good Morning, sleeping princess.” Zelda’s tone was unusually gentle as she caressed his tail, unconcerned about the slippery film still covering his scales “Have you slept well?”

The slightly groan that followed, associated with a grimace and a failed attempt to move, were his only reply.

“I know, sometimes waking up sucks.”

To be completely honest, Sidon was really curious about how at times she was apparently able to hold a conversation with either Link or the Wolf without really receiving clear answers from them.  _ Lifetimes worth of practice _ , she only replied when the prince tried to inquire about it _ I still prefer to force him to speak, he will get lazy otherwise _ .

“Mghr…”

It was curious how Link actually… tried to speak, even if all he could produce was a gurgled sound. The prince had to restrain himself from pushing the queen away and take her place when the golden Zora sighed and smiled, looking at the ceiling.

“I know, I know…” she let go of his hand, moving her palm to his shoulder instead “So, how do you feel?”

Link hesitated, still staring at the white surface above the bed. He apparently tried to move both arms and the prince was filled with shame when a second grimace of pain appeared on his face, after that he only raised one arm, fingers twitching as he considered his reply.

“... so?” insisted Zelda as the wolf pressed his face to the Zora’s cheek.

‘ _ R e a d y _ ’ was all he managed to spell, letter after letter, before his hand fell back on the mattress and his eyelids closed once more. As soon as they heard him snore the presents exchanged a tentative smile.

“Well…” Zelda got up, placing both hands on her hips and looking pleased “Looks like he still needs to nap a little but from the sound of it I’d say the worst is over. Sooooo…” she cracked her knuckles, looking around and humming “... tell me, Sidon.”   
  
The prince tilted his head in her direction, more eager to reach once more for Link but at the same time ready to do anything that was needed.   
“Yes, my lady?”

  
“Do you think you can provide us-” she glanced in Link’s direction “A proper alchemy table?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slowest chapter but we're *getting there*. Ruta is ready, Zelda has been warming up and the team is ready between Sidon, Zelda, Paya, Link and Wolfie. Five people versus a single temple, it's going to be an unique experience for 'the Links'.
> 
> Also... what Zelda used to fly over the lake were the boots from Zelda II, courtesy of Old Grandpa.


End file.
